Trump Card of Konoha
by StCC
Summary: Put a summary into 255 characters? Okay, a better one's inside... Naruto's been taken out of the academy exams and locked up for a reason he knows not. This is what would happen if instead of reverting back to the Third, they moved on to a Fifth. Complete
1. A Surprising Meeting

A/N If you are an Iruka fan, ANBU fan, or a fan of any other person other than Sakura, Sasuke, Itachi, Hinata, and the rest of the gang (not any of the sensei, though), you might not want to read this.

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, nor am I associated with the anime company in any way. Wow, why'd I make it sound so serious?**

**Naruto: Because this is a serious fanfiction. **

**Silameara: Oh yeah! Okay, here's a more-complete summary than the one underneath the story title (not enough room to type it all and have it make much sense).**

**Summary: What would happen if instead of switching back to the Third Hokage, Konoha moved on to the Fifth Hokage, who happens to want the power of the Kyuubi among the many ninja of the village? Since he can't use Naruto's ability to use Kyuubi's power on a regular basis, he decides to do something different… One thing is for sure, though. None of Naruto's friends, especially Hinata, will ever forgive him for it.**

**Naruto: You made it sound like something bad will happen to me…**

**Silameara: I know! Something bad WILL happen to you!**

**Naruto: Not fair! Make something bad happen to Sasuke instead!**

**Silameara: Sasuke doesn't have the Kyuubi inside him.**

**Naruto: It's called FANfiction for a reason, you know…**

**Silameara: Be quiet, I spent ages planning this all out!**

Chapter One: How is it Possible?

"Hang on, I promise I'll get it right this time!" Naruto assured Iruka. "Just one more try! I'll make a perfect clone!"

_What an idiot, _Iruka thought. (Told you that Iruka fans wouldn't like it) _Hasn't he realized by now he won't be able to do all but the simplest Jutsus properly? Considering the condition he's in, I'm surprised he doesn't pass out when he does them! _"Naruto, I'm sorry," he said, though in an obviously not-sorry way. "You fail."

"No! I'll get it this time! I promise!" Naruto shouted angrily. He formed another hand seal, aware that the other academy students were giggling. Most of them, anyway. Sakura sighed. Sasuke looked in pity (Itachi doesn't turn evil in this story, deal with it), and Hinata just stared at the ground. The three snapped out of their trance as a perfect clone was formed. A single clone-nothing to brag about. Everyone but Hinata, Sakura, Sasuke, and Iruka laughed.

In fact, Iruka's eyes were wide with surprise. Possibly even a hint of fear, Hinata found out, looking at the way he stared at Naruto.

_How? How is it possible that he can do that with only a half a percent of his actual power? _"Everyone, be quiet!" Iruka ordered. The class fell silent.

Any second now, Naruto was prepared for a hateful remark. "Naruto…" Iruka murmured. "For now I'll say you've passed this part of the exam. The rest is postponed until tomorrow for all of you. Class dismissed."

Naruto smiled. _Ha! I did it! _He wanted to jump on a table and shout, _IN YOUR FACE! I WILL BECOME HOKAGE, HA! _Sadly, though, the bunshin had drained almost all his energy. Sasuke walked over, smiling. "Congratulations, Naruto!" he said happily. "You actually passed!"

"Yeah, good job!" Sakura agreed. Hinata, however, only blushed and murmured:

"Yeah, umm… Good job, Naruto… You'll be a great ninja someday…"

Smiling, Naruto bid the three goodbye and headed home. Soon he was out of everyone's sight. But then, a voice called his name. He shivered. _What do they want now? _Naruto turned around to see an angry mob.

"Die, demon!" one shouted, tossing a Kunai at him. Naruto barely dodged in time.

"What did I do wrong?" Naruto asked, fear somehow seeping into his words. This happened every time.

"Like you need to know!" a woman replied. "You horrible monster!"

"But I didn't do anything…" Naruto whispered as the crowd drew closer. _Is this about the pranks I pulled? It can't be! It isn't like my pranks ever hurt anyone! Who could get this mad about it? _He thought the possibilities through quickly. This had been happening every day since he became a student at the academy.

Why, though?

"Kill him now!" a man growled.

_Maybe someone got hurt by one of my pranks? _Guilt swept over him. _Have I been too selfish in trying to get attention? _"I'm sorry, I won't pull pranks any more!" he said, hoping it would work, tears falling silently to the ground. No answer came as the mob came closer. Naruto turned and broke into a run to get home. "I'm sorry, I'm really sorry! I'll never even _plan _a prank again!" Seeing that it had no effect, he added in a shout, "Just please leave me alone! I'm scared!"

And yet the mob followed him. One person even yelled, "Now let's see how _you _like being so scared you'd just like it all to end!"

"Leave me alone!" Naruto sobbed, and grabbed the door to his house as roughly as was possible without breaking it. He shoved it open, and slammed it shut behing him, panting and gasping for breath, every bang on the door making his stomach lurch with tension.

Finally, it stopped, and Naruto relaxed his muscles, finally daring to move. _Why? Why do they do this to me? _

The next day, Naruto quietly slipped into the academy, hoping nobody saw him. The mob the other night had been terrifying, although it hadn't been the first. It was almost normal, but Iruka and Mizuki seemed to be in high spirits.

"Iruka-sensei?" Naruto asked after he sat down with Sakura, Sasuke, and Hinata. "Why are you and Mizuki-sensei so happy?"

Instead of Iruka answering, Mizuki replied: "Because today the village is getting rid of an extremely large problem."

"Really? What's the problem?" Kiba asked. Everyone else nodded in agreement. "Yeah, I'd like to know, too," Naruto added.

He was completely unprepared for what happened next.

"The problem?" Mizuki repeated. He stared right at Naruto. "The problem has always been, is, and always will be you."

Naruto's smile faded. However, it quickly came back. "Very funny, Mizuki-sensei. What's the real problem?"

"Yeah, we want to know!" Kiba insisted. Sasuke nodded. Sakura and Hinata said nothing, slightly worried. They both thought the same thing: _What has Naruto done? _Hinata almost refused to believe her crush had done anything wrong.

"I'm serious," Mizuki said quietly. He turned his head, and all the academy students (including Naruto) turned their heads as well to see an ANBU member standing in the frame of the open door.

Suddenly, without warning, the ANBU member spoke (which is unusual, since they're usually dead silent while wearing a mask): "Naruto, please step forward." It was the voice of a woman.

_Wh-wh-what? _Naruto thought, his eyes wide. Fear of the obviously-stronger ninja forced him to stand up. "What's going on?"

"I said step forward," the ANBU member repeated coolly.

They were slow, painful steps, filled with tension and nervousness, but Naruto slowly walked towards the woman, not blinking once. He stopped when he was right in front of her, looking upwards to see the masked face.

_What's happening? _Naruto thought, worried. _Does this have any connection to the angry mobs chasing me home every day? _He must have said his second thought out loud, because the ANBU member in front of him nodded. She reached into her pocket and pulled out a pair of handcuffs.

_What? _Naruto thought, making sure he wasn't saying anything. _It was a few pranks! It's not _that _bad, is it? _He took a step back, the fear that he had tried to hide showing clearly in his eyes.

"Naruto!" Hinata cried. "What's going on?"

Not knowing himself, Naruto only took another step away from the ninja in front of him.

"Don't move, or I'll be forced to kill you," the woman ordered, and snapped the handcuffs around Naruto's wrists. "The Hokage wants a word with you."

**A/N Cliffhangers! Yay! Fun to use, but awful to read! Hey! That should be my new motto!**

**Naruto: Oh, please…**

**Silameara: Shut up, you're the one in handcuffs.**

**Naruto: The readers hardly know anything about the story yet! You can't end the chapter here!**

**Silameara: Yes I can! -evil laugh- I shall respond to reviews in the next Author's Notes in the next chapter! **


	2. Learning of the Seal

**A/N Cliffhangers! Fun to use, but awful to read! **

**Naruto: NO! I THOUGHT YOU WERE JOKING ABOUT THE MOTTO! **

**Silameara: Hehe… Moving on! **

**Naruto: Uhg. What happens now that I've been arrested? **

**Silameara: Read, if you want to find out! **

**Naruto: But I'm a part of the story! I can't read it, or see it from other character's points of views! **

**Silameara: TOO BAD! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA! **

**Naruto: You're crazier than Sasuke! **

**Silameara: The Disclaimer for not owning Naruto was in the first chapter, but I'm bad with Japanese names and copied them from some manga and other anime. I do not own "The Wallflower." Aww… Nor do I own any of its characters, such as Ranmaru, Yukinojo, and Sunako. (I may use more of the names as the story goes on). **

**Naruto: Copy-cat. **

Chapter Two: A Change in Life (For the Worse)

Naruto followed the ANBU member through Konoha; he had no choice, really. She had grabbed him by the hair and was dragging him along as such. A few villagers looked at the scene and smiled. Some even laughed. One actually threw a stone, which hit Naruto in the back of the head. The ANBU member (who had a Bird mask, I don't care what actual character had it, this is a totally made-up character) did nothing to stop it, and soon all the villagers were shouting angrily at Naruto and throwing stones and kunai. By the time he and the bird-masked woman were at the Hokage tower, he had a bleeding shoulder, blood trickling down from his lips, multiple bruises, and worst of all, a broken heart.

"So, is this little boy really the container of the Kyuubi?" the Fifth Hokage asked.

"Yes," was the reply.

"Container? Kyuubi?" Naruto gasped.

"Why yes. You're the container holding the Kyuubi, as the Fourth Hokage was never able to kill it. Instead of killing you, like we should have, Konoha has let you live," the Fifth explained, brushing his long black bangs out of his light brown eyes. Of course, his actual name was Ranmaru Itsumo (Yes, I know Itsumo means 'always'). "After learning that you can do a bunshin with only half a percent of your actual chakra, I almost made the decision to kill you."

Naruto gulped; he could feel sweat form due to nervousness.

"However," Ranmaru continued, "In the end, we've decided to make use of the fact that you have the powers of a demon. You'll be a trump card for Konoha, someone only used in wars and extremely difficult missions."

"B-b-but I haven't even graduated the academy! And what do you mean by a bunshin with a half percent of my chakra?" Naruto asked, unsure about this and what was going to happen to him.

"Sunako-chan, please answer its questions," the Fifth said.

The ANBU member (who was apparently called Sunako) responded with, "Iruka has a scroll with ninety-nine and a half percent of your chakra sealed up inside it. The scroll is made with flesh of some of Konoha's enemies, so it doesn't end up being destroyed by all that power. And what does it matter if you haven't graduated the academy yet? You're a demon, you don't need to! After all, you're going to get your power back momentarily, making you stronger than all the ANBU put together."

_Flesh?_ Naruto glared at her. "If you do, what makes you think I'd be obedient as Akamaru?"

"You'll find out," Ranmaru replied. "Sunako, take him away."

"Come on, demon brat," Sunako ordered, not seeming to care if she was in an ANBU mask or not. The Hokage, however, noticed this.

"Sunako, please take off your mask if you're going to talk."

Sunako nodded and removed the bird mask, revealing brown eyes and black hair that fell a few inches past her shoulders (Wow! She's like Haku, only she's actually a girl!)

"Like I said before, come on, demon brat." The words didn't seem to fit her kind look. However, Naruto obeyed out of fear of what an ANBU member could do to an academy student that struggled to get average grades.

_It isn't fair. _I _didn't destroy the village, Kyuubi did! _Naruto thought, annoyed and frightened at the same time. He was so involved in his thoughts that he didn't notice that he was being dragged towards ANBU headquarters. He only realized this when Sunako took him inside. A few other people without masks on were standing there, as if waiting.

"So you brought it, Sunako-chan?" a man asked, nodding his head in the direction of Naruto.

Suddenly, Naruto felt rage pulse through him. "I have a name, you know. I'm not an 'it.' "

"Shut up," Sunako ordered, and slapped him. Naruto, who hadn't been expecting it, fell to the ground (Combined with the fact that she's an ANBU, that must have hurt; yes I know slapping doesn't usually get people to fall to the ground).

"So, are the preparations done?" Sunako asked.

_Preparations? _Naruto thought, his stomach giving a lurch. _Oh, please don't bring out some sort of dagger or another weapon used for killing… _

"Yes, everything is set up. This way," the man answered, leading them through a hall. After a while, he stopped and did a hand seal. "Release," he murmured, and A large square of bricks vanished, revealing bars.

_What the heck is happening here? _Naruto thought. _Is that where they keep poisons and weapons or something? _

Sunako stepped forward, still grasping Naruto firmly by the arm. "Alright, where's the switch to open it?"

"Here," the second ANBU member replied, pressing a button on the wall. The bars slid upwards, and Sunako pulled Naruto inside.

"What's going on?" Naruto asked, hardly able to make himself heard as fear seemed to squeeze his throat.

Sunako simply lifted him up and clipped some chains hanging off the ceiling around his wrists (after removing the handcuffs, of course). "You can take care of the rest, Yukinojo-kun."

"Hai," the man (apparently Yukinojo) replied. He had light brown hair and green eyes.

"Can someone please tell me what's going on?" Naruto asked sheepishly as Sunako left.

Giving no indication that he had heard, Yukinojo clipped some more chains around Naruto's ankles. _These are heavy… What are they made of, titanium? Maybe I should try to escape… _Naruto thought, slightly annoyed now.

"Don't even think about trying to escape," Yukinojo said simply, as if reading Naruto's mind. "Those chains are stronger than titanium."

_Worse than I thought, _Naruto thought.

Yukinojo suddenly reached upwards and pulled something down from the ceiling- a rather low ceiling. As he pulled it towards Naruto (a strong cord slid out of the ceiling as he did so, attached to the thing), Naruto could see that it was a sort of mask (it looked like the kind of thing Sasuke had over his mouth in the hospital in episode something where Kabuto came close to killing him, but Kakashi rescued Sasuke, just in case you pictured something else). Yukinojo took a few strings attached to the sides of the mask and tied it firmly around Naruto's mouth. _Where does the cord lead to? It's hollow, like some kind of tube… Should I even breath? _He managed to hold his breath for quite awhile, while Yukinojo simply stood and watched, as if waiting.

Finally, Naruto took a deep breath, his lungs aching from lack of air. A few moments after he started breathing, however, he felt weak with exhaustion. "What's happening?" he asked Yukinojo. _Poison… I should have known._

"That special gas you're breathing in will neutralize almost all of your chakra, leaving you with just enough to live," Yukinojo explained.

_So what happens now? Am I just going to stay here? _Despite the fact that he shouldn't have even cared about the fact, knowing the vulnerable position he was in, he couldn't help think, _How boring. _

Finally, Yukinojo put a collar-like thing around Naruto's neck. "A chakra control device. Any chakra you somehow manage to use, even in your weakened state, will vanish at the touch of this button," he added to his many explanations, and motioned towards a switch.

"So what am I supposed to do?" Naruto spat. "Sit here and do nothing the rest of my life?" His voice was quieted slightly because of the mask covering his mouth and nose, but nonetheless he was still heard.

"Yes, as a matter of fact, at least until a war or something of that sort," Yukinojo replied, walking away, and pressing the button that had raised the bars. The bars lowered once more.

_Just great, _Naruto thought. _I'm stuck in here as if I actually did some sort of criminal action! And the wounds I got on the way to the Hokage's tower still hurt! _

**A/N The next chapter is what happened in the point of view of the academy students, Iruka, and Mizuki. **

**Naruto: Not fair. I want to know what happens, too, but I'm going to be stuck in a heavily guarded cell! **

**Silameara: To those who are saying, "Konoha has a jail, so why is Naruto in the ANBU headquarters?" ANBU headquarters is definitely harder to escape from, and since everyone classifies Naruto as a demon, if you were them, wouldn't that make sense? **

**Naruto: Aren't you supposed to be responding to reviews now? **

**Silameara: Oh yeah! Forgot about that! Sorry. Okay, first off, there's Vincent Nuramashi. Yes, I update as soon as I finish the chapters, so the updates will probably come pretty fast (for now, at least). I'm like Sasori, in a way. I don't like keeping people waiting. **

**Naruto: And? **

**Silameara: Next, there's Avatarofrage. For one thing, it isn't 5 percent of his power he has, it's a HALF OF A PERCENT. Sorry to those who it wasn't made clear to. And I mean both Naruto's chakra and Kyuubi's chakra. Finally, yes I will update soon. **

**Naruto: AND? **

**Silameara: I know, I know! Finally, there's wolvknight. Thanks, you really like the story? And for the last time, YES I WILL UPDATE SOON! -glares- Everyone who reviewed told me to update soon! **

**Naruto: Isn't that a good thing? It means they like the story. Dim-wit. **

**Silameara: HEY! THAT'S MY LINE! Wait… A good thing that they say that?… Oh… **

**Naruto: WELL WHO KNEW? -sighs- Are you seriously the one writing this? It seems like you must have had help, with brains like yours.**

**Silameara: HOW DARE YOU! I haven't had any help writing this! There a tons of crazy smart people in the world! Wait… That didn't sound right…**

**Naruto: Baka.**


	3. Hinata's Rage

**A/N Cliffhangers! Fun to use but awful to read! **

**Naruto: Please stop that. **

**Silameara: Shut your trap. **

**Naruto: Why should I? **

**Silameara: Because I'm the author! And as you should know, I control the story! And maybe I'll just happen to decide that Hinata is going to come along and beat Naruto to a bloody pulp! **

**Naruto: Shutting up. –thinking- Maybe she isn't such a baka after all… **

**Silameara: So, as I was about to say before I was RUDELY INTERUPTED, this chapter is how the Academy students, Iruka, and Mizuki reacted. Oh, and yes, there will be a Naruto-Hinata pairing, as well as a Sasuke-Sakura pairing. **

**Naruto: If this is like how lame "Exiled Innocence" was… **

**Silameara: STOP BUGGING ME ABOUT THAT! **

Hinata watched as her beloved Naruto was dragged out of the classroom. "What… Naruto… Why?"

"He's a demon," Iruka answered, and explained all that Ranmaru explained to Naruto in the chapter before this.

"Yeah, right!" Kiba laughed. "He's a failure! How could he possibly be that dangerous?"

"If you paid attention, you'll notice that I said his power has all been sealed away in a scroll of human flesh," Iruka snapped.

"Prove it!" some random boy challenged.

Mizuki opened a drawer and passed something to Iruka. Iruka promptly opened it and showed it to the class, revealing a design of complex lines and shapes. "That's a pretty powerful seal," Sakura whispered to Sasuke and Hinata. Ino stood up and cried, "No way! I bet this is just one of Naruto's ideas of a prank!"

"Why would we be saying it's true, then?" Mizuki asked her quietly.

Ino sat back down, slightly embarrassed at having missed the obvious. Neji, who sat behind Hinata, grabbed his cousin's shoulder and growled, "Hear that? I told you you should give up with your crush on Naruto!"

"No!" Hinata cried out, shocking multiple people, including Neji as she stood. "Naruto isn't a demon! He isn't! He's a really, really kind person that would never change because of something stupid like that!"

Mizuki rolled his eyes. "Yes he is. Get over it."

"Well," Hinata spat, "If he truly is a demon, I hope he kills you all! You…" She hesitated for a moment, before closing her eyes and shouting, "FILTHY PIECES OF SHIT!"

Everyone was quiet. Kiba broke the silence by asking with wide eyes, "Did Hinata-san just… Shout? _And _use the word 'shit?' "

"Hinata…" Sasuke murmured quietly, and after a brief silence, added, "Chan…" Sakura grabbed her sweater and pulled her back into the seat.

Trying to act as if that had never happened, Iruka announced, "Tomorrow, if you'd like, a group of people who want to can go see him. So, who wants to?"

Everyone raised his or her hands-most of them just wanted to go for 'the fun of seeing an actual demon.' Seemingly they didn't understand the fact that they'd already seen him hundreds of times in class.

"I must see Naruto-kun! Is he being treated well? Bad? I have to know!" Hinata sobbed, tears falling freely to the floor.

"It's okay, I'm sure Naruto will be fine," Sakura comforted. Sasuke put a hand on Hinata's shoulder and smiled.

"With his stubbornness, it's the _ANBU _who had better watch out," he said warmly. "They're in for a surprise if they expect him to be obedient. Even through pain and suffering, he'll never give in until the end." _I hope, _Sasuke added silently.

"Y-yeah, I g-guess you're right…" Hinata said softly, tears still falling onto the desk in front of her. "I… Just hope he's alright…"

Ino, realizing how close Sasuke seemed to be getting to Sakura and Hinata, cut into the tragic conversation. "Hey, Sasuke, want to go out with me tomorrow, after class?"

Sasuke froze. _Ah, he's nervous, _Ino thought, but found herself wrong as Sasuke turned around and slapped her. His ice seemed to be made of ice as he stared at her. "How dare you think I would go on a date with a stuck-up bitch like you who doesn't even _care _that Naruto has been unjustly taken away from us all?"

Ino was quite taken aback by this. _Think fast, Ino, _she thought. "But I _do _care!"

"You insolent baka," Sasuke growled, gritting his teeth. "I wouldn't forgive you for not caring about Naruto if you saved my life a hundred times over! You're a filthy witch!"

Ino's eyes filed with tears. "How can you reject me like that, Sasuke-kun?" she sobbed.

"Class dismissed," Iruka said, and Sakura, Hinata, and Sasuke walked over to a training field that nobody was using for a bit of time without any interruptions (like Ino).

"Naruto has always been so kind!" Hinata sobbed. "He isn't a bad person, he isn't, he isn't, he isn't, he isn't…" She chanted the words over and over again.

"Of course he isn't!" Sasuke agreed after awhile.

"Sasuke, what will our families say about this, you think?" Sakura asked.

"Not a clue," Sasuke sighed, arm still around Hinata to comfort her.

"My family…" Hinata sobbed, "Has always hated Naruto, and I don't know why. They'll be happy with him gone."

"He isn't gone!" Sakura said quickly.

"He's still alive," Sasuke added, but then covered his mouth. _Oh great. I'm such a baka. That isn't a very comforting statement! _

"I…" Hinata whispered. "I… I…"

"It's okay, Hinata…" Sakura murmured, but was interrupted.

Interrupted by Hinata. "I SWEAR I WILL SAVE HIM!" she vowed, and broke into a sob.

"It's alright, Hinata… Everything's okay…" Sakura whispered.

"Yeah, we promise we'll help you save him," Sasuke added.

"Thanks, guys," she whispered, and hugged the both of them. "I don't know what I would do without you."

"We're always here for you, Hinata. Just ask us for help, and you'll receive it. Now, what was it that Naruto always said after his sentences?" Sakura asked, and let a smile escape her.

Both Sasuke and Hinata smiled, as well. Hinata even said, "Dattebeyo! We're going to be Team Dattebeyo!"

**A/N Ta-dah! Another chapter finished! Haha! I'm so cool, I'm so great, I'm so awesome, I'm so… **

**Naruto: Late. **

**Silameara: YOU COPIED THAT FROM MEW MEW POWER! **

**Naruto: Tokyo Mew Mew is ten times better. **

**Silameara: I KNOW THAT! Now let me speak! **

**Naruto: You DO realize that Dattebeyo thing was kind of lame, right? **

**Silameara: IT'S SUPPOSED TO BE AN EMOTIONAL THING! YOU'RE RUINING THE MOMENT! **

**Naruto: Yay! Does this mean you'll end the story now? **

**Silameara: No way, I'm not ending the- Wait, I thought you said you couldn't tell what was happening in the story from other character's points of views! **

**Naruto: I lied. **

**Silameara: HOW DARE YOU? **

**Naruto: How dare YOU? YOU'RE the author here. Not me. **

**Silameara: You're personality right now is so OOC. **

**Naruto: It is in almost every fanfiction. **

**Silameara: I guess so. As for review responses, first up is YamiKyuubi (Wow! Haven't you reviewed some other stories of mine as well?). There's going to be a Hinata-Naruto pairing and a Sakura-Sasuke pairing. LET'S ALL GIVE A BIG SHOUT-OUT TO YAMIKYUUBI, BECAUSE YAMIKYUUBI LIKES THAT PAIRING! YAAAAAAAAAAAY!!!!!!!**

**Naruto: -cough-Exiled Innocence-cough- **

**Silameara: AHEM! I am the AUTHOR, baka! **

**Naruto: And you're the one typing my insults at the very moment. **

**Silameara: Shut up. **

**Naruto: You're the author, YOU shut me up. **

**Silameara: UHG! Next up is avatarofdiscord. –reads- ACK! ALL THAT WAS SAID IS UPDATE! **

**Naruto: HOW MANY TIMES DO I HAVE TO TELL YOU? THAT'S A GOOD THING! And this chapter was too damn short!**

**Silameara: SHUT IT!**


	4. New Power

**A/N Must… Resist urge… To update at lightning speed… **

**Naruto: Yay! She didn't do it again! **

**Silameara: Oh, you mean this? Ahem! Cliffhangers! Fun to use but awful to read! **

**Naruto: NO! THE STUPIDITY! YOU'RE TORTURING ME AND THE THIRD CHAPTER HASN"T EVEN STARTED YET! NOOOOOOOOOOOO! **

**Silameara: -laughs insanely- **

**Naruto: Exiled Innocence. –knows the words anger Silameara- **

**Silameara: Yankee doodle went to town, and aggravated Sila, accidentally crossed the line and got beaten to a bloody pulp! **

**Naruto: Shutting up. **

Naruto stared blankly at the bars in front of him. A single hour since he had been taken to the awful place, and he was already feeling that he might go insane at any minute. Not only was it boring him, but he couldn't move his legs at all, and tension was eating away at his mind. He almost wish that they would kill him and get it over with, if only to relieve himself of the horrible feeling of vulnerability.

And his legs… He couldn't move them at all, due to the fact they were heavy _and _whenever he breathed, his energy was being lowered so that he was no more powerful than a small child that had never trained to be a ninja.

_Mizu… _he thought desperately. _I need water more than anything right now… _

"Water…" he gasped. The poison he was breathing just made him thirstier than usual for some reason. His throat felt like it would crack and fall apart because of how dry it was. As if by some miracle, Sunako walked past a few moments later.

"Hm?" Sunako looked at Naruto's low eyelids and open mouth. Being an ANBU, she didn't need anyone to tell her Naruto needed water. _Not surprising, actually. It's a new poison gas that has yet to be perfected-the fact that it causes thirst is just a side-effect that will be worked out one way or another. _She walked away, only to come back with a bottle of water in hand. She pressed the switch to raise the bars and stepped towards Naruto.

Naruto, who was hardly paying any attention, only realized she was there when she yanked the mask off of him. _What? _Naruto thought, confused at first. As soon as he saw Sunako, his eyes widened and shined with fear. However, at the same time, breathing normal air again eased his throat slightly. Sunako opened the bottle and held it in front of him. "Do you want this or not?" she asked.

_I… Will… Not… Beg for water… _However, he nodded. Slow, painful nods.

"Fine, then," Sunako replied, and poured some water into the Jinchuuriki's mouth.

_Water at last… _he thought, slightly relieved at the prospect of finally drinking something. A few minutes later, he found the mask back over his mouth, Sunako gone, and nothing to see but bars and the wall on the other side of the hall behind them once more. The sudden switch from fresh air to the poison air make him feel tired.

Right as he was about to fall asleep, he heard footsteps.

Soon, Iruka, Mizuki, Yukinojo, and Sunako were in front of him. Iruka was holding a scroll. "Yuki-kun, you should you it," he said.

_Do what? _Naruto thought. Yukinojo nodded and took the scroll. He unrolled it, revealing the seal holding the power that has been lost to Naruto for years. _Why do I feel so relaxed looking at that scroll? _he thought.

"You want your power, don't you, demon?" Yukinojo asked, and the seal upon the scroll glowed red, before vanishing.

Suddenly, Naruto felt stronger than he ever had been. _This power… I like it! _However, as quickly as it had come, it disappeared, if only temporarily, due to the poison gas he was breathing. _What just happened? _

"Now that you're power is back, you won't find yourself without that mask on very often," Sunako said calmly as the other three left.

"I don't care what you say. I'm going to escape this place and become Hokage!" Naruto barked.

"A demon for Hokage? Not likely… Especially since you won't be able to escape in the first place."

"I'll show you!" he spat, and then smiled. "You'll see. You'll all see."

He paused, and added in a voice that sounded scarier than a thousand screams of death, "I might even decide to finish what I started… And kill you all."

Sunako didn't flinch, but as she walked away Naruto saw fear flash in her eyes. Suddenly, he realized what he had just said. _No! I didn't mean it! What's going on? _

He sighed and hung his head. What would tomorrow bring?

**A/N COOL! AS I TYPE THIS, I DON'T FEEL THE NED TO BLINK! I AM THE QUEEN OF NOT BLINKING! I WAS ABLE TO KEEP MY EYES OPEN FOR TEN MINUTES STRAIGHT BEFORE GETTING BORED! **

**Naruto: To me, that's the stupidest and most un-useful thing I've ever heard of. WHO CARES IF YOU DON'T NEED TO BLINK? **

**Silameara: I DO! **

**Naruto: Screw you and your petty abilities! I can use chakra, you can't! **

**Silameara: -cough-Author-cough- **

**Naruto: Umm… Not that chakra is very useful! Keeping your eyes open for long periods of time is very useful, indeed! –laughs nervously and dashes away- **

**Silameara: What's his problem? –shrugs, and laughs evilly- I shall respond to reviews now. First up, Dragon Man 180. **

**Naruto: -comes back- COOL! Me being trained by Kyuubi is a great idea! **

**Silameara: Okay, maybe later in the story, but not right now. Next is Ichihime. Umm… The Third Hokage is… On vacation? **

**Naruto: WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU NEVER THOUGHT OF WHAT HAPPENED TO THE THIRD??? **

**Silameara: FINE! I'll put it in the next chapter! Last but not least is wolvknight! This Naruto-Hinata pairing will be as original as possible! **

**Naruto: Yeah, right. **

**Silameara: JUST BE QUIET!**


	5. As Long as You're Happy, I'm Happy

**A/N CLIFFHANGERS! FUN TO USE, BUT AWFUL TO READ! **

**Naruto: -grumbles- Baka. **

**Silameara: KUSO! I DID CAPS LOCK ON THE MOTTO AND I'M TOO LAZY TO FIX IT! **

**Naruto: Like I said-Baka. **

Naruto woke up to find himself in chains. _What? Where am I? _Naruto thought. _Oh yeah. I'm in the ANBU heaquarters. _Footsteps echoed through the hall. A large group of people were coming. _Which ones? Most footsteps are light, some are louder… A few adults and multiple people my age? That doesn't make sense. _

On Hinata's end, she felt horrid walking into the ANBU hideout with the academy students. Sakura comforted her while Sasuke yelled at all those saying Naruto was a demon.

"Damn you!" he finished, glaring at a girl.

"Sasuke, calm down!" Sakura murmured. "You can't stop them from thinking what they think. It's impossible, even if they stop talking about it."

"I'll rip everyone who finds someone innocent a demon to shreds!" he spat, ignoring Sakura's comment.

Naruto began to tune out the footsteps. _Probably just some ANBU or something… _he thought. _I wonder what Kyuubi does in the seal all the time. If I knew, I could do that, too. I feel like this is a similar situation. _

He thought a little more. _Maybe I should just sleep. That will pass the time… _

Hinata and the other academy students walked down a hall, following an ANBU (Sunako.) She didn't have the mask on, though.

After awhile, they came to a cell. "Here," was all Sunako said, and stopped walking. Multiple people looked in. Hinata stared, too. For a moment, she was terrified. Naruto's eyes were closed-was he dead?

She finally relaxed-he was breathing, it was okay.

"Byakuggen," she whispered, and tried to make sure he was okay.

"Well?" Sakura asked quietly. "How is he?"

"Tell us now!" Sasuke growled, anxious to know.

"He's breathing in some sort of poison, his chakra is low, and he's sleeping right now. That's all I can figure out," Hinata replied. Sasuke closed his eyes.

"I wish I could see for myself!" he murmured. "Sharingan!" His eyes opened as red with two black dots around his pupils.

"Sasuke! You've…" Sakura gasped.

"Just like Hinata said, he looks fine," Sasuke sighed, switching off his newly acquired ability. "Funny. I was always excited about the thought of maybe one day activating Sharingan. But now… I could care less."

Sakura sighed. "I wouldn't care about that either, if I was in your place."

Hinata nodded and switched off Byakuggen. "Now what?" she asked.

Kiba walked quietly towards them. "This isn't right. He's a human being, not a fox."

Akamaru gave a bark of agreement.

Sunako pressed a switch on the wall. "If you want, you can go closer," she said simply as the bars rose.

Hinata immediately dashed over. "Naruto!" she sobbed.

"Calm down, Hinata!" Sakura murmured, and rested her arm on Hinata's shoulder. Sasuke followed them. Multiple others walked over, as well, talking amongst themselves.

"He doesn't LOOK like a fox."

"But he is; Mizuki-sensei and Iruka-sensei said so."

"Maybe they were wrong."

"As if. Maybe it's a henge? Who knows?"

"You're probably right."

"Hey!" Sasuke spat. "He isn't a demon! Now you'd all better fu-"

"Sasuke! Stop it! It isn't going to do anything!" Sakura snapped, annoyed.

"But-"

"Once someone's mind is made up, it's made up. Nothing can really change it unless they're proven wrong. And we can't prove them wrong, can we?" Sakura asked quietly.

Sasuke hung his head.

Naruto slowly opened his eyes upon hearing the argument. He stared blankly at the three as they argued with others. _Is this a dream? _

"H-Hinata? Sakura? Sasuke?" he managed to say.

"Naruto?" Hinata gasped, looking up. "Naruto!"

"What's going on?" he asked quietly.

Sunako walked towards him. "Awake, are you?"

Naruto said nothing. After she left to talk to some academy students, Hinata asked, "Naruto, are you okay?"

Kiba, who had followed the three, added; "Yeah, we're all worried… Well, strike that… Us four are worried," he said instead, looking around.

"You don't think I'm a…" He didn't finish. He didn't want to.

"Iruka-sensei and Mizuki-sensei… Are bakas," Hinata growled. Naruto looked at her in surprise. Hinata then added, "Oh, Naruto! You were once so happy, and now they've treated you like dirt!"

He smiled ever so slightly. "As long as you care, Hinata… I'm happy."

"We'll save you, Naruto!" Hinata promised. "As soon as we're strong enough, we'll save you!"

For the first time, Hinata felt like she was seeing Naruto's true smile.

Later that day (after they had all gone back to the academy and then class ended) Sasuke was in the training field with Hinata and Sakura, trying to raise their moral.

"Come on, guys! We should start training! I'll go get Itachi! He'll help!" Sasuke suggested, and ran off. When he came back, he was with Itachi.

"Father is a fool," Itachi murmured. "Thinking an innocent child a demon is something only filth could do." (HE'S NICE IN THIS STORY! DEAL WITH IT!) He then added, "Congrats on the Sharingan, I guess. Now, what was it you wanted?"

"Training!" Hinata said. "We need to be strong to rescue Naruto!"

Itachi nodded. "I'm not trained to teach, but I'll do what I can."

"Hai, Itachi-sensei!" team Dattebeyo replied in unison.

"Alright. Hinata, you're a Hyuuga, so you should work on Byakuggen, Sasuke needs to work on his Sharingan, and since I was captain of the ANBU before I disagreed with holding Naruto captive, I know some healing skills, so Sakura… Would you be okay with learning that?"

"Of course!" Sakura replied.

"So it's settled, then. Let's begin." _If only the Third hadn't died after chasing down Orochimaru… Naruto would have been able to lead a happy, normal life… Well, almost normal. The angry mobs would be fewer, though._

Hinata nodded."Right. Let's do this!"

**A/N Okay. Responding to reviews. First up is Ichihime.**

**Naruto: IT WASN'T ME THAT SAID ANYTHING! **

**Silameara: Okay, when Naruto said "I might even decide to finish what I started… And kill you all," it was something out of his anger and partially because of Kyuubi's anger. It's… Both of them, in a way. Kyuubi kind of fueled it, while Naruto put the words together. Confusing, I know. **

**Naruto: …You bet it is. **

**Silameara: Next up is Dragon Man 180. Yes, Naruto is going to be angry when he gets let out. But as you'll soon find out, he won't be able to 'run' anywhere. **

**Naruto: Here comes the history lesson. –covers ears- **

**Silameara: AHEM! In old times, someone would occasionally be put in some sort of device where they sat on a bench-like thing and their legs were held straight out for a few hours or so with some wodden board with holes in it. I forget what it was called, though. **

**Naruto: Not listening! **

**Silameara: Whatever it was called, after finally getting to walk again, they would be wobbly and unable to move properly for awhile. That happened after a few hours. Naruto, in this story, has been unable to move his legs at all for a day or two. Ninja or, not, he won't be able to run. But yes, if he could, he'd go and stay in the Forest of Death for a day… Maybe more. **

**Naruto: -who hasn't paid any attention- Should I have listened? **

**Silameara: Nope. Now, next is wolvknight. Jiraiya isn't going to do much. But he WILL come in later (much later.) He and Tsunade will not be in the story for a long while. And they won't help him escape, they… **

**Naruto: SPOILERS! **

**Silameara: Oops. They aren't the bad guys, though. They WILL help in another way. Next is Gnosismaster. The pairing (for the billionth time) is Naruto-Hinata and Sasuke-Sakura. I am seriously annoyed now. Can people stop asking that question? **

**Naruto: Most people don't read author's notes. **

**Silameara: But I do! Alright, next is i 'unno! THE THIRD IS DEAD! **

**Naruto: But nobody knew that until now! **

**Silameara: Oh yeah… Anyway, the third isn't breaking Naruto out! And yes, I know it's a little short, and yes, Naruto is beginning to get so enraged the Kyuubi is beginning to fuel what he's saying and doing, but Hinata can stop that through… -hero music- LOVE POWER! **

**Naruto: Oh, please… **

**Silameara: And next is Shinjite Florana! Glad you like the author's notes! Wait, you're supposed to like the story… Not these… **

**Naruto: -sighs- **

**Silameara: Next is… OH NO! YAAAAAAAYME JUST SAID UPDATE SOON! And also… YOU MADE ME COUNT EVERY A IN YOUR NAME SO I COULD TYPE IT RIGHT! YOU'RE LUCKY I CARE ABOUT YOU REVIEWERS! **

**Naruto: Her way of saying thank you for the review. **

**Silameara: And SlashnYaoi, thanks for the advice. This story is now under the Naruto and Hinata genre, rather than the Naruto and Kyuubi one. See you next chapter!**


	6. Reactions

**A/N Next chapter! **

**Naruto: Now what? **

**Silameara: We see the reactions of the rest of the rookie nine (Err… Nine minus Naruto is Eight)! Gai's team is included because in this story, they're academy students at the same time as the rookie nine. We're also going to have a few more things happen… Such as the beginning of a war…**

Sasuke sighed and banged his head against the tree. Why? Why? Why did Naruto have to suffer? His best friend was going through all this for no reason, and he, Sasuke Uchiha, was powerless to stop it! This wasn't right!

"Itachi?" he called. "Why does everyone hate Jinchuuriki?"

"Because they think of them as demons," Itachi responded solemnly. "They're normally so angry at the demon for doing something, they take it out of the container. It's like thinking a drink in a cup is disgusting, throwing the cup to the ground, and having it smash to pieces with the drink. What did the cup do wrong? Nothing. But because it held the cause of pain, it was also hated."

Sasuke nodded, understanding. "I wish people could understand that Naruto is a kind person… It isn't fair…" Sasuke said quietly. Screw the rules and ways of a ninja. He couldn't help but let tears fall softly down onto the grass. Itachi ruffled his hair.

"In the world of shinobi…" Itachi murmured. "There are many things… That aren't fair."

- - -

Sakura was taking it just as hard as Sasuke. However, she released her sadness in different ways. In the one training session she had had with Itachi and her friends, Sakura had gotten twice as strong (not as strong as she eventually gets in the end, but strong enough to do many other things). She punched the wall, her knuckles not hurting. Vibrations could be felt.

"IT'S… NOT… FAIR!" With each word, she punched the wall again. "NARUTO… IS… INNOCENT!"

Her mother walked up the stairs and entered the room. (In case you haven't figured out by now, Sakura's in her own house-they're all in different places currently; Sasuke's in the training grounds with Itachi, Sakura is in her house, etc.) "Sakura, what's wrong?"

"EVERYTHING!" Sakura shouted, enraged. "One of my best friends is being treated like a criminal! Naruto hasn't done ANYTHING wrong! It's the village who should be locked up and treated like shit!"

Slightly taken aback, Sakura's mother said, "Dear, demons have to pay for what they've done… Just because he's your friend doesn't mean he's a good person."

Sakura froze. She turned her head just enough to give her mother a hateful glare. "You're all…" she growled. "As good as trash."

- - -

Hinata was attacking Neji, hurt. He had called Naruto a demon.

"YOU JERK! I'LL DESTROY YOU!" Hinata shouted. She was putting up a good fight-Neji could hardly keep up with her during Hinata's breakdown. Suddenly, she stopped. "Caged bird seal…"

"NO!" Neji cried out, clutching his forehead. Hinata's father immediately ran over to see what the problem was.

"Activate." At Hinata's word, Neji fell to the ground.

"STOP IT! IT HURTS!" he yelled.

"I should hope so," Hinata replied angrily.

"Hinata!" her father shouted. "Stop it this instant!"

Hinata deactivated the seal, still blindingly angry at Neji, who was laying on the ground taking in sharp breaths of air. Hinata stared at her father. "What is the meaning of this?" he asked.

"You all hate Naruto. I hate all of you!" she spat, and dashed away.

- - -

Kiba stared blankly across the clearing of the training field at Akamaru. "Do you think he's a demon?" he asked. Akamaru shook his head.

Kiba nodded. "Neither do I. They're all crazy. He's nothing but a weakling. And they call him a danger to the village. It doesn't make sense."

Akamaru gave a few barks.

"What do you mean?" Kiba asked. "He _did _smell different when we last met him… More powerful, in a way. But he was nice to Hinata, Sasuke, Sakura and I."

Akamaru gave some more barks. "Yeah, we should have been nicer to him…" Kiba murmured in agreement. "I always called him a failure, but I never knew he was going through so much away from class… I never bothered… Akamaru, I feel so guilty."

The pup padded over and sat next to Kiba to comfort him.

- - -

Shino wasn't very much moved.

He didn't like the idea, but at the same time, it didn't really matter too much. What difference did the loss of one academy student make?

Nonetheless, he felt sorry for Naruto.

A bit of pity wouldn't stop him from training, though.

Bugs flew around the training field.

- - -

Shikamaru sighed. "What a drag it must be to sit there in a cell doing nothing day and night."

Choji nodded. "Did you notice his stomach growling? Doesn't look like he's been eating much."

"Yeah, I admit the Fifth is mad," Shikamaru agreed. "They don't even treat the criminals in Konoha's jail that badly."

"Makes me wish everyone at the academy had been nicer to him, rather than treating him like class clown."

"He _was _class clown."

"Yeah, but everyone treated him horribly. We aren't much better than the Fifth if we think others are under us because of strength."

Closing his eyes, Shikamaru couldn't help but murmur, "He's considered a weakling by us, and a monster by the village. Pretty crazy."

"The fact that the weak wield to the strong in this world… It's awful."

"Yeah, it is awful. And Hinata's been taking it horribly."

"I pity Naruto _and _Hinata."

- - -

Lee sat there, not bothering to train. He was on a stump in the training fields, too depressed to care that he needed to keep working on Taijutsu. "What an un-youthful thing to do," he murmured. "Gai-sensei, I've lost my care for the springtime of youth! This is too depressing."

Gai (you'll later learn that all the Jounin that train the Genin in the anime/manga are good guys in this fic) nodded. "Yes, but it's the Fifth's orders. We can't do anything about this horrible un-youthful thing. Just don't lose hope! Don't lose the springtime of youth, and everything will be okay!"

"HAI, GAI-SENSEI!" Lee shouted, though the words were hollow with a major loss of enthusiasm.

- - -

Tenten and Ino were in the training field, chatting.

"Why does anyone care about Naruto?" Ino asked. "He's a poor excuse for a ninja, anyhow." (I'm part of the anti-Ino fanclub. Sorry.)

Tenten glared. "Even a poor ninja shouldn't be treated this way!"

"But I'm just saying it doesn't affect _us, _so what does it matter?"

"How would you like it if Sasuke was in Naruto's place? Doesn't affect you!" Tenten spat.

"Well, it _would _affect me, since Sasuke and I are madly in love."

"Sasuke likes Sakura more than you, and you know it."

"He just doesn't have the courage to tell Sakura that she's only getting in his way of dating me!"

"Didn't look that way when he cussed you out for not caring about Naruto."

"He was shocked, is all."

"Yeah. Right," Tenten responded sarcastically.

- - -

Sunako walked over to Naruto to check on him. When she got there, he wasn't moving-just hanging there, half asleep. "Lift your head up, would you?" she growled.

"Why bother?" Naruto replied.

"Because I said so," Sunako spat. "Unless you want to die of starvation, I suggest you look up."

Naruto slowly lifted his head, only seeing a blurred image of the ANBU. He didn't exactly _want _to die, but he wasn't about to refuse if death beckoned to him.

Sunako opened the cell and stepped towards him. She held an injection device in her hand.

"What's that for?" Naruto asked wearily.

"Instead of risking removing that mask you're wearing so you can eat, this injection has all the necessities for you to survive. As for water, that will be the only time that mask gets removed."

"Yeah, okay…" Naruto sighed blandly, not really having heard what Sunako said. He hardly felt the sharp flash of pain in his shoulder.

Before Sunako left, she said, "There's an expected war coming soon. And you're taking part in it."

Naruto snapped his head up. "What?"

"You don't think you were being kept alive for nothing, did you?" she asked. As Sunako walked away, she added: "And if you try and turn on us, that collar you're wearing will inject poison into your bloodstream, killing you."

Unable to speak, Naruto just stared at her as she left.

**A/N Don't worry, Jiraiya will come in soon. Maybe a chapter or two more. But soon. Trust me. Tsunade won't be here 'till later, though. **

**Naruto: NO! DON'T BRING ERO-SENNIN! HE'S CREEPY!**

**Silameara: HEY! I PLANNED THIS OUT ALL TOO WELL TO CHANGE IT NOW!**


	7. War, The Painful New Chakra

**A/N HI PEOPLE! **

**Naruto: Here comes the war chapter… **

**Silameara: HAI! LET'S WRITE! –takes out pencil and paper- **

**Naruto: But you're typing this… **

**Silameara: I am? Oh well. **

**Naruto: -sigh- **

Sunako was standing in front of Naruto. "The war has started. Are you ready?"

"B-b-but I haven't even passed the academy exams!"

"You're a demon. What does it matter?"

Beginning to lose it, he replied, "I'm twelve, inexperienced, worst at the academy, weak with exhaustion, and you want me to help in a war?"

"Demons don't get tired."

"I'm not a demon!"

"Nobody is stupid enough to fall for the faked innocence trick, demon brat."

"You're all idiots."

"Said the one who's chained up."

"You think I'm helpless?" he asked, glaring. Unable to resist, and just wanting to play on Sunako's fear a bit, he added, "Try me."

"Just shut your trap and do what you're told!" Sunako spat, fear evident in her voice.

_Success, _Naruto thought. Then, after a brief moment, he thought, _What am I doing? Scaring people? What's gotten into me? _

Sunako reached up to unlock the chains. Suddenly, an idea came to Naruto.

_I'll escape the moment she unlocks them, _he thought. _Perfect! _

However, when he fell to the ground, the moment he tried to run forward, he fell to the ground. "What happened?" he asked, confused. "I can't move my legs!"

"Tried to escape, did you?" Sunako murmured. "Not going to work. Your legs are too stiff to run. Isn't that obvious? You haven't been able to move them for a few days."

"You're looking at the one who didn't pay attention to these things in class," Naruto replied, annoyed.

"Whatever," she sighed, and picked him up. "How you handle this is your problem."

_Your problem too, _thought Naruto. _If I can't do anything or if I die, Konoha has to handle things on their own. _

_But if Konoha gets beaten… Hinata! _

- - -

It was raining when they got to the battlefield. A few of those taking a break from the fight stared. One of those on the enemies side even laughed.

"Is Konoha really so pathetic that they're sending a _child _to fight?" he asked, laughing. The forehead protector told Naruto that he was from the hidden Mist village. (Couldn't think of anything else. If it was Suna, it would ruin the plot, because I have something happen with Gaara later on.)

Sunako carefully put Naruto on the ground, ANBU mask covering her face. Because of that, she didn't say a word. Naruto was kneeling on the ground, not knowing what to do.

_I can't do anything to help. Why can't they understand that? But… _If he didn't do anything, and Konoha lost the war, Hinata would… _Hinata… I'll do this only for you and everyone who cares._

A kunai flew towards his head. Looking up, he simply stared at it. As soon as it was a foot away from his face, a tendril of red chakra deflected it. _I need… Help…_

He found himself in a sewer-like place. He could walk perfectly fine, and he managed to easily follow a certain path of tunnels. _Where am I going? _he thought.

After awhile, Naruto was standing in front of bars. From inside, there were two hate-filled eyes glaring at him. "Are you…" Naruto asked, "The Kyuubi?"

"Yes, I am," was the reply. "Why are you here?"

Suddenly filled with rage, Naruto shouted, "You nearly destroy Konoha, ruin my life in so many ways, and you want to know why I'm here?" Still fuming, he shouted, "Help me for once by helping out in the fight!"

The demon gave a chuckle. "I like your spunk, kit. Because of that I'll help you. It might hurt, though. Are you sure a puny child like you can stand it?"

Naruto nodded.

"Alright. I'll give you full access to my chakra as well as your own from now on. After all, if you die, so will I. Increasing your chances of living means increasing my own," the fox said.

Naruto woke up from the strange dream. The kunai he had knocked away from himself was still flying through the air. It hadn't even been a second.

Wondering if what he had just gone through actually happened, Naruto did a hand seal. Somehow knowing what to do, he smiled, the chakra's power corrupting his thoughts and knowledge of the danger that was involved in what he was doing. Already his eyes were red with slits for pupils, his nails became claw-like, and his teeth became fangs. He stood up, the chakra beating the stiffness in his legs.

A surge of excitement at the upcoming battle came over him. The blood spilled on the ground, the action, the danger…

He soon found himself speeding across the field, slicing through opponents with a kunai… Sometimes he even used his teeth.

_I feel so tired, _he thought after a few minutes of hearing screams of terror and tasting blood that came from biting the enemy. _And this chakra is beginning to hurt! _He stopped, and fell to the ground, panting. _What's been happening? I can't remember… Why do I feel so… _

He fell over, unconscious, the demon chakra leaving patches of burnt skin all over him.

When he woke up, he was still on the ground, surrounded by ninja; not just ANBU, but Jonin and Chuunin as well. "What happened?" he asked wearily.

"The Mist ninja fled. Simple as that," a familiar voice said. The Fifth Hokage.

"They did?" Naruto asked, unable to even sit up. All his joints ached terribly. He wasn't used to moving so fast. The burns hurt, as well.

"Yes, although we killed most of them. In order to stop them from going for reinforcements, you're going to hunt down the last one. Be aware that if you take longer than a week, you'll be poisoned."

"What?" Naruto gasped.

"You heard me. You leave now. It's too risky to wait any longer."

"But-"

"I said go!"

"Hai," Naruto replied meekly, and struggled to his feet, using the Kyuubi's chakra to walk. Limping slightly, he went farther from the gate to begin the search.

_"I can see why you need help," _Kyuubi mused.

_"How can I hear you?" _

_"The connection I made between you and the seal. At least now I'll have more to do than sleep. I can also watch what you do and give you tips in battle. May I just say that it was a bad move using so much chakra?" _

The tone was mocking. _"You could have said I would get injured." _

_"Demon, remember?" _

_"I can see why everyone hates you. What did you do, insult people to death?" _

_"Could have, but it takes too long." _

Enraged by the demon fox's laughing at him, Naruto shut out the comments and made his way towards the nearest village besides Konoha. After he got there, he noticed many people staring. It was no wonder. He was battered up, burned, limping, and tired. One woman even went up to him and asked, "Excuse me, but are you lost?"

"No, but thank you for asking," Naruto replied, almost wondering how he was still able to be polite after all he had been through.

"Are you sure?" she asked. "I can help you find your parents…"

"I don't need help finding the dead," Naruto sighed.

"Oh, I'm so sorry! I didn't know!" the woman gasped. Her hair was short and blonde, while her eyes were brown. A light purple diamond was on her forehead. (If you don't know who it is by now, that's just sad.)

"It's okay. Anyway, have you seen a Mist ninja pass through here?"

"No, but would you at least come to my house? I'm a healer, I can help you with those burns."

"I don't have any money. Sorry."

"Who said I would charge you?" she asked.

"I just thought-"

"You're coming with me!"

She pulled him off with surprising strength. "Uh… I'm Naruto, by the way. Who are you?" Naruto asked.

"Tsunade."

**A/N I just need to answer the poison question for everyone: **

**In the episode where Naruto stabs his hand trying to get poison out of his bloodstream, Kakashi knows he's a Jinchuuriki, and still worries about getting the poison removed. Kakashi is a Jonin. He should know whether or not it would affect a Jinchuuriki. Anyway, since he thought it would affect Naruto, it must mean that the healing ability of a Jinchuuriki must not get rid of poison. **

**If this seemed incorrect, too bad. It's fanfiction. Bear with me. **


	8. The Collar

**A/N **

**No, I don't hold a grudge against any of you innocent readers out there. Oh, you don't know how sorry I am! Truly sorry!**

**Really, I can hardly bear saying this, but… Every time I get an email, it's something about a flame I got because of the poison. Always about the poison thing. Like nobody appreciates the story at all. Like nobody wants me to continue writing. Yes, I've finally decided that the story ends here, right now. **

**Naruto: Hey, the first letter of every sentence is- **

**Silameara: Don't you say a word. Like I was saying, this is the final chapter. In fact, the only reason I'm writing the next one is so I won't be breaking the rules of I'm sorry. **

He was lying in a bed again. It was so nice compared to what he had become used to in Konoha. "Thank you, Tsunade-dono," he said as the healer worked on the burns he had.

"What happened to you, anyway?" she asked.

"Well…" _If I tell her, she'll hate me, too, _Naruto thought. "I was on a mission, and… Well, you know."

"What village are you from?"

"Konoha."

"Strange. I didn't notice a forehead protector in your sweater's pockets when you took it off."

"I lost it," Naruto replied instinctively.

"How can someone so young be on a mission that could possibly get them killed?"

_How do I answer that? _he thought.

"Hmm? What's this collar around your neck?" she asked.

"Umm… Uh… No reason!" he said a little too quickly. Tsunade was already studying the design.

"This is only used on the most powerful in Konoha's jail. What's it doing around your neck?"

"N-n-n-n-n-n-no r-r-r-r-r-reason!" he stuttered.

"I want some explanations, or I'll be forced to kill you."

"Why does everyone hate me enough to use death as a threat every time?" Naruto spat, not knowing what else to say.

"Would you just tell me what it's for?"

"You'd hate me," Naruto replied, Tsunade holding him down.

"Tell me."

Unable to do anything else, Naruto told the whole story. Tsunade just stared at him, not showing any emotion at all. Then again, that was the way of the shinobi. For all Naruto knew, she was horrified. _Much better at hiding her emotions than Sunako. _

"I see," she said simply.

"Please… I'm not a demon…" Naruto insisted.

"Don't worry, I won't kill you. The Fifth's narrow-mindedness is precisely why I left Konoha."

"You're a missing nin?"

"No, I left with permission, meaning I can come back welcome any time."

She sighed. As an afterthought, she added, "Ever since the Fifth was named Hokage, I've been traveling Japan, rather than staying in Konoha. They're all idiots. So is everyone else who doesn't trust Arashi's seal."

Naruto winced at the Fourth's name, but Tsunade didn't notice. "Hinata isn't that bad," Naruto said.

"Hinata?"

"Hinata Hyuuga, Sasuke Uchiha, and Sakura Haruno. They don't care if I'm a Jinchuuriki. They're still my friends."

Tsunade nodded. "I had better finish healing you."

"Can't you get this collar off?"

"So you could run away? I wish I could, but that think was designed by the Third himself. It can only be removed by using a certain jutsu."

"Than why not do the jutsu?"

"Thing is, only the Third knew it, and he took it to his grave when he went after Orochimaru."

"So… I'll be stuck with this forever?"

"Sadly, yes. There have been rumors that the Fifth knows, but… I wouldn't bet on it."

"Even if he did, it wouldn't matter."

"True."

**A/N **

**I am sorry, to all you who loved the story. Truly sorry.**


	9. Ero Sennin

A/N 

**HAHAHAHAHA! IN YOUR FACE, FLAMERS! ALMOST ALL OF YOU FELL FOR THAT TRICK! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! **

**Naruto: …Sila, you've totally lost it… **

**Sila: Which Sila? Me, from "A Tale of Tails," or the author? **

**Naruto: The author. Go back to your story, Sila. **

**Sila: Okay. Bye. **

**Silameara: -still laughing evilly- **

**Sasuke: She's crazier than I am. **

**Silameara: DO NOT INSULT ME! –throws Itachi doll- Fetch! **

**Sasuke: Woof! Woof! –comes back with doll torn to shreds- **

**Silameara: ACK! YOU KILLED THE LOVE OF MY LIFE! –squirts with squirt bottle- **

**Sasuke: -whimpers- **

**Naruto: Just get to the next chapter already. You're scaring me. **

**Silameara: Oh, fine. **

Naruto stared at the ceiling, laying down so Tsunade could finish healing the wounds. There was a knock on the door. "Be right back," Tsunade sighed, walking to the door. As she opened it, a woman with black hair and a pig next to her stepped in. "Welcome back, Shizune," Tsunade greeted.

Nodding, Shizune directed her attention to the bed. "Tsunade-sama, who's he?"

Since Naruto was too tired to answer him self, Tsunade answered; "His name is Naruto."

"Yes, okay," Shizune said, and gave a nod. "Anyway, where'd you put Tonton's food?"

"Tonton? In the kitchen, top cupboard."

"Hai."

Returning to Naruto, Tsunade explained: "That's Shizune, my assistant, along with Tonton, the little pig you saw beside her." After Naruto nodded, she added, "Make sure she doesn't see the device on your neck. She'll recognize it instantly, and in turn, you'll have to tell her about the Kyuubi thing. I'm not sure how she'll react."

"Okay. I have to go soon, anyway. If I don't-"

"Don't worry, I'll get Shizune right on it. You need rest."

"But won't Konoha suspect-"

"They'll expect it was just the chakra that healed you."

"Why would they think the chakra would heal my injuries, but not get rid of the poison?"

"Because it wouldn't. It's a specially designed poison made long ago, origionally used for killing Jinchuuriki, as it was only recently that they stopped killing every Jicnhuuriki that was found out. Now, however, they're using it for this purpose."

"How does it work?

Another knock on the door. Naruto immediately focused chakra, having only relaxed at Shizune because of how calm Tsunade was about it. But the look on Tsunade's face was unreadable at the time-annoyance?

The seal appeared, making Tsunade quickly say, "Careful. It's most likely Jiraiya. He's an expert on seals, and he'll recognize that one! Even if he can't see it, he'll be able to tell with a single glance that you're a Jinchuuriki! Hide!"

Naruto nodded, pulled his shirt on, and dashed into the room with Shizune in it. "Hi," she greeted.

"Hi," Naruto replied, hoping he sounded calm. He walked to a place where he would hear the conversation.

As Tsunade opened the door, someone burst through, shouting, "THE NUMBER ONE TOAD MASTER IS B-"

"Put a sock in it, Jiraiya."

_Is this guy really an expert on seals? He's so… Odd, _Naruto thought. He glanced into the room, but quickly pulled his head away, not wanting to be caught. Jiraiya had white hair. Long white hair.

"Tsunade, you're such a spoil-sport! Always have been, ever since our time as a Genin."

"And you're a perverted hermit."

"Just because you use a Genjutsu to hide your age doesn't mean you can call me a hermit!"

"What do you want, anyway?"

"I just sensed a seal nearby, so I was wondering if-"

"Nobody with a seal is here! Search somewhere else!"

"I think it must have been that kid that walked into town an hour ago. Where'd he go?"

"Not here!" Tsunade replied a little too quickly.

"You know where he is, don't you."

_Oh no, _Naruto thought desperately. Shizune looked up from what she was doing. "If he's after you, run. Trust me. He'll do… _Things _to you." Not seeming to understand the _real _reason Naruto was worried was a good thing. He was about to leave through the back door when Jiraiya entered the room.

"Well, what have we here?" he asked. "You're definitely a Jinchuuriki."

_Pervert, how to get rid of a pervert… Umm… Wait! I know! The trick I used to do for pranks! _"Orioke no jutsu!"

As it was, Jiraiya stared, gaping. "Would you mind staying in that form a little longer?" he asked quietly.

"NO! CHANGE BACK!" Tsunade and Shizune were shouting.

Not knowing what else to do, he changed back, dashed out the back door, and attempted to run from the shocked Jiraiya.

"Where do you think you're going?" Jiraiya asked, right behind him. Naruto froze.

"St-stay away!" he stuttered, instinct causing tendrils of chakra to slowly make their way towards Jiraiya.

"That won't work, you know. I fought in the battle against the Kyuubi. I thought you looked familiar when I first saw you," he added. "You're the container of the Kyuubi, aren't you?"

Fear flashed in Naruto's eyes.

"Calm down. I can bet Konoha didn't leave you with many happy memories of non-Jinchuuriki," he sighed. "Should have known…"

"Should have known what? That they would lock me up, treat me like a criminal, force me to take part in a war when my legs are so stiff from disuse that I can barely walk, and then while I'm barely able to move due to injuries inflicted by Kyuubi's chakra, send me after some Mist-nin before they get reinforcements, all the while at the threat of being killed by poison?"

Through the whole thing, Jiraiya stood there, jaw-agape. "When I expected they would hate you, I _never _expected this… Who's currently the Fifth?"

"Ranmaru," Naruto responded, not adding an honorific. "Ranmaru Itsumo."

"No wonder!" Jiraiya remarked. "He's nothing but a demon in human form. He's tried multiple times to control Jinchuuriki and use them as weapons, getting more advanced each time. Usually, it fails. But your inexperience, combined with the hard-to-escape condition you're in… Well, that would make his plans successful for once. Not that it's a good idea."

"He has a history of this?"

"Yes, and I bet that's why he was chosen to be Hokage. He's awful, especially compared to the Fourth. He Fourth was a great man, while he's… Naruto, what's wrong?"

Naruto had winced hearing mention of the Fourth. "Don't speak of the Yondaime… In front of me…" he growled. "I know he did what he did for the good of the village, but… It still hurts," he added, shaking.

Jiraiya lifted a hand up. For a moment, Naruto was sure he was going to get hit, and shut his eyes. But what he got was merely a pat on the head. "Alright. I won't. Now you'd better get back to Tsunade before some of those wounds she didn't get a chance to heal get worse."

"Hai."

**A/N Next chapter soon. It's going to be from Hinata's point of view! I think…**


	10. Summoning

**A/N Hinata's point of view, along with Naruto's.**

Hinata gave muffled sobs, her face against Sakura's shoulder, who was trying to calm her down. Sasuke glared at anyone who stared.

"Naruto is injured, barely able to walk, and has only seven days to get back to Konoha? What if he's dying right now?" Hinaa sobbed.

"It's alright, there's no way he's dead, he hasn't had time to go very far yet," Sakura assured her.

"But he's in danger!"

"Come on, you remember what he told you not to long ago, right? 'As long as you're happy, I'm happy.' Don't you want to be happy to help him?"

"All I want is for him to come back!"

Sasuke walked over. "Calm down, everything is all right."

"No it isn't!"

Neji was staying far away, still quite terrified of what Hinata would do with the caged bird seal if he got near her. Kiba went towards them an asked, "Do you think he might try to escape?"

"He can't," Sasuke sighed. "That collar-thing prevents him from doing anything Konoha doesn't want."

"They're all bakas."

"I agree."

"Come on, the rest of the academy exams are finally coming. Let's all become Genin so Naruto has something to be happy about when he gets back," Sakura said.

"_If _he comes back," Hinata sobbed.

(Ran out of ideas for what Hinata does. Moving on!)

Naruto stared blankly at the bowl in front of him. Ramen?

"What are you doing? Eat it already," Jiraiya, who had been invited to stay for dinner, said.

"It's for me?"

"Of course! Who else would it be for?" Tsunade asked.

"Don't know," he admitted, picking up the chopsticks and beginning to eat. He couldn't help but smile; he hadn't eaten anything since before he had made the bunshin that caused all this to happen. He hadn't had dinner that night, and he hadn't had breakfast that morning before Sunako came.

After about three bowls full, he stopped. "Thank you, Tsunade-dono," he said. "I'll go now-"

"No you aren't! You're spending the night! You are in no condition to do any more fighting. In fact…" She turned to Shizune. "Would you mind going after this Mist ninja?" she asked. Shizune shook her head.

"I'll get right on it tomorrow," she said.

Naruto stared at them all, wide-eyed. "I've already caused you enough trouble as it is-"

"Listen to yourself, Naruto. You shouldn't be saying things like that. You're what-twelve? You should be the guest of honor at everyone's pity party, not treated like a tool!" Tsunade growled, anger at all of Konoha showing in her eyes.

Unable to do much else, Naruto nodded. "I guess you're right," he murmured. "But… It's too late for that now."

- - -

It was later in the day. Tsunade showed Naruto where he could sleep that night. "Here," she announced, opening a door. There was a normal sized bedroom. "Sorry if it's a little plain- Naruto?"

Naruto was staring wide-eyed at the bed. "N-nothing," he replied. "It just feels like it's been so long since I slept in a bed."

"It probably has," Tsunade sighed. Naruto clambered into the bed, exhausted. It was only seconds before he fell asleep.

- - -

By the time he woke up, it was late the next morning. He changed into his normal clothes (Tsunade had bought him some temporary pajamas and had gotten Shizune to wash his clothes). Still slightly tired, he walked down the stairs.

_Kit, what's wrong with you? You're acting so weak. _

_ Excuse me for not being a powerful demon, Kyuubi. _

_ I give you complete access to an endless supply of my chakra, and you still consider yourself part of such a pathetic race? _

_ The chakra injures me if I use too much. _

_ Yes, but the fact that you can use it at all because of the fact that your body has grown so used to it after this long makes you something not human or demon. _

_ Are you trying to get me to release you? Because it's tempting because of how annoying you are. _

_ Then I should continue to annoy you, I suppose. _

_ Do you even know what sarcasm means? _

Blocking out the responses, he walked over to Tsunade. "Has Shizune come back ye?"

"Yes, and she brought back a backpack with… Proof in it." Slightly disgusted, she opened the backpack, which has a plastic bag inside. When she opened the plastic bag, Narto saw the head of the Mist-nin, forehead protector and all. After Tsunade closed the bag and handed it to him, he said, "I should be going now. Thank you for all the help you've given me, Tsunade-dono."

"Please just call me Tsunade. And…" She whispered something in his ear.

"Call Jiraiya… Ero-sennin?" he repeated. Shizune and Tsunade burst out laughing. Jiraiya turned eight different shades of red.

"Guys, that isn't funny," he growled. "Oh, and by the way, Naruto… You still have six days left. Want to stay awhile longer? For training?"

"Hai!" he replied happily. "I'd love to!"

"Then come outside," he said. Tsunade rolled her eyes.

"I say _I _should train him."

"Don't listen to her Naruto, she'll have you summoning slugs."

"Summoning?"

After explaining summoning jutsus and how Jiraiya summoned frogs, while Tsunade summoned slugs, Naruto nodded. "So… I can pick either?"

"Pick frogs. They're ten times more useful than those slimey creatures," Jiraiya said.

"SLIMEY?" Tsunade barked, and punched him. Jiraiya was knocked into the wall. "AND TOADS ARE ANY BETTER?"

_Summon without signing a scroll, kit. _The Kyuubi listed the hand seals and the fact that he needed to use blood to summon, as well. Naruto did so, and the other three stared, confused.

"Naruto, you need to sign a scroll fi- Huh?" Tsunade gasped. A fox appeared in front of them.

"Well, that means the summoning is covered," Jiraiya said as the fox disappeared. "Naruto, how'd you know which hand seals to do?"

"Kyuubi told me," Naruto replied.

"K-k-k-Kyuubi?" Shizune gasped. "You can communicate with him?"

"Yes. Is something wrong?"

"No, nothing's wrong," Tsunade replied. "Jiraiya, you should… Teach him Rasengan."

"But Tsunade, we don't have time. It took the Fourth Hokage three years to learn."

"Anything that took someone else three years, I can learn in a week," Naruto said, and laughed.

"You want to make that a bet?" Tsunade asked.

"Yes."

"Fine. If you can learn Rasengan in the six-well, five and a half days, since you need time to get back to Konoha-days you have before you have to go back, I'll give you this necklace. What do you bet?"

Not knowing what he really had, he said, "I don't have much to bet, but I'll refrain from pulling pranks if we ever meet again after this."

"Pranks?"

"You're looking at the one who painted graffiti on the statues of the Hokages."

Nodding, Tsunade held out her hand. "Done."

Jiraiya laughed. "That necklace shan't be in danger if that's going to be the bet placed. Tsunade's first time winning a bet! That'll be in the news worldwide!"

Tsunade punched him.


	11. Out of Paradise and Into Reality

**A/N NEXT CHAPTER! AND JUST TO CALM DOWN ALL THE READERS, NARUTO WILL NOT DIE! You guys all act so worried! I could never kill Naruto!**

**He's too adorable! –buys millions of Chibi dolls-**

**I WANT TO HAVE ALL THREE! KYUUBI, NARUTO, AND ITACHI!**

**OH, AND SASORI AND ZETSU TOO! -mumbles- The bad guys always have to be so cool.**

**Naruto: Am I the only non-evil person you like?**

**Silameara: Yep.**

Naruto took reluctant steps towards the gate, necklace hidden under his sweater. He had learned Rasengan in three days, shocking Tsunade, Jiraiya, and Tsunade.

He had the backpack they had given him with the head of the slain Mist nin. They had promised him they would go back to Konoha soon-just not at that moment, to avert suspicion that they had met before.

As soon as he got there, he saw Hinata. When she saw him, she dashed towards him and embraced him in a hug. "Naruto-kun!" she cried happily. "You're safe, you're safe, I thought you were dead!"

"It's alright, Hinata-chan, I'm fine," he laughed, if only for a moment. A few ANBU walked over, including Sunako. After ushering Hinata away (it took quite awhile, she wouldn't let go of Naruto), they took the bag.

"He's dead, all right," Sunako sighed, handing the backpack to someone else. She jerked her head in the direction of the Hokage's Tower, and the one carrying the bag (who happened to be Yukinojo) went to show Ranmaru.

"Well, come on," Sunako growled, pulling Naruto by the hair towards the ANBU headquarters.

- - -

Missing the freedom he had had just recently, Naruto sighed attempted to move, but the chains were too heavy. At this rate, his legs would be stiff again. Annoyed, he hung his head, not knowing what else to do. "Sakura-chan… Sasuke-kun…"

"Hinata-chan…"

- - -

Training with Itachi was tiring, but Hinata was much stronger than she had been. So was Sakura, even though she was part of no major clan. Sakura had already developed great healing skills, and was also great at dodging as well as strength.

Sasuke was getting better with Sharingan, able to see through almost all attacks. Hinata was also learning much more about using Byakuggen to its full extent.

"Itachi, can I ask you something?" Sasuke asked.

"Of course."

"How did I get Sharingan? I don't really understand."

"An Uchiha will get Sharingan when they experience a powerful urge to protect their friend. It has nothing to do with strength," he replied. "You wanted more than anything to do something to help Naruto. Even though Sharingan couldn't help you with that, because you had the urge to protect him, you learned it."

Sasuke nodded, understanding. "Alright."

- - -

Sunako pressed the switch that raised the cell bars and walked towards Naruto (who was wide-eyed, but refused to show any other signs of fear). Naruto could say anything, she had knocked him out through a jab at the neck.

When he woke up, he was laying down on some sort of table. "Huh?" he murmured, trying to move his head, but he couldn't. His wrists, ankles, and neck were being held down by some metal things (don't know how to describe it, I know 'things' is a little vague, you should be able to get a basic idea of what's going on).

"He's awake," someone said. Yukinojo.

"Doesn't matter. As long as he can't move," Sunako replied.

"What's happening?" Naruto asked, confused and terrified at the same time.

"Finding more ways to keep you from running away, rather than the threat of being poisoned," Yukinojo answered carelessly, as if it was no big deal.

As if knowing Naruto's next question, Sunako said, "Yes, the tests will hurt. No, nobody but you cares."

Getting a better look at his surroundings, Naruto was able to figure out that he was still in the ANBU headquarters, without a shirt on-the way he has been when Tsunade had healed him.

Not daring he talk, he couldn't help but be annoyed. _Kyuubi, can you do anything? _

_Not without risking your-and my-demise through a death-by-poison. _

_Come on, surely you can do something! _

_Nope, sorry, kit, _Kyuubi replied in an obviously-not-sorry way. Sure, he would die along with Naruto if Naruto died, but he never experienced pain at the same time as Naruto, so if Naruto was tortured or injured, Kyuubi would hardly care, so long as Naruto didn't die.

_There has to be some way out of this,_ he thought to himself. _There just has to be. _Then it struck him. _The necklace! They can see it!_


	12. Saved by Love

**A/N Last chaptershort.**

**This chapter will be longer… I think.**

**Naruto: -sighs- I do all this, go through fear and pain, and you're late with my paychecks!**

**Silameara: -passes large bowl of ramen- There. That should cover everything.**

**Naruto: YAY! –eats at lightning speed-**

Somehow, some way, they didn't see the necklace. Whatever the reason, Naruto soon forgot about it.

Naruto could only watch as Sunako jabbed at his arm with a needle, and the tube filled with blood.

"Ouch!" he muttered through clenched teeth. _Could she AT LEAST be a little gentler with that thing? _

_ Kit, why would she? She hates you. _

_ If you don't stop annoying me now, I'll do whatever it takes to commit suicide by getting them to poison me. And you know what that means! You die, too! _

Silence.

Yuki took the blood sample from Sunako and walked somewhere Naruto couldn't see him-what they were doing and how they were doing it, he didn't really know. Although it was definitely getting on his nerves. Sunako held up a clipboard and wrote something down on it. "Yuki-kun, where's the other-"

"Here." He handed her about four empty blood-samplers.

Doing whatever it took to keep from moving or talking, Naruto somehow made it through all four. From what he picked up from the few words exchanged by Sunako and Yukinojo, they were testing the reactions to the blood that happened through different chemicals-trying to create some new kind of injection, he supposed.

Sunako soon took Naruto back to the cell he had been in earlier (this invlolved handcuffing him and tugging him in the right direction). After she left, Naruto couldn't help but hang his head, too exhausted to do anything. _When is this going to end? _

_ A question I ask myself every day. You've been like this for about a month or so. I've been trapped inside you for 12 years! _

_ You aren't being tortured.\ _

_ Yes I am. I'm having to listen to you. _

_ What did I say about shutting up, again? _

Silence once more.

- - -

Hinata wanted to smile, but she couldn't as she waited for her team's instructor. She had been put in Sakura and Sasuke's group, luckily, and they were still waiting for their sensei to arrive, even though everyone else had already left (if you don't know which sensei they got by now…). Annoyed, Hinata put an eraser over the door. "He'll pay for being late! I'm in a bad mood right now!" (haha, copying the actual episode!)

"You've been in a bad mood ever since Naruto…" Sakura sighed but didn't finish. "Oh, Naruto!"

Sasuke merely nodded. "The Fifth Hokage is a baka."

"You said it," Sakura agreed.

"But Hinata, do you really think a Jonin will fall for that trick?" Sasuke asked, looking at the eraser.

The door opened.

And the eraser landed on someone's head. He had silver hair, a mask, and his forehead protector going over his left eye. (YOU'D BETTER KNOW WHO IT IS NOW OR YOU'RE A BAKA!)

"ABOUT TIME YOU GOT HERE!" Hinata spat.

"Hinata-chan, please, Naruto wouldn't want you being like this, would he?" Sasuke asked.

"Yeah, but-"

"Whatever conversation I've just interrupted, we're going. Meet me at the roof," the Jonin sighed.

After getting to the roof, the Jonin said, "Okay, why don't we all introduce ourselves? My name is Kakashi Hatake. Now go through and tell me your names, dreams, and hobbies."

Sakura went first. "My name is Sakura Haruno. My hobby would be learning. My friends are my teammates. We were all put on the same team-I almost can't believe it. My dream… Well, I want to be a great ninja, I guess."

Then Sasuke: "I'm Sasuke Uchiha. I enjoy training. My dream is to become stronger than my brother Itachi."

"Hinata Hyuuga," Hinata said simply. "I don't have much of a hobby, but my dream is…" She sighed. "I want so badly to rescue Naruto!"

Kakashi, instead of yelling at her, nodded. "I see there are still sensible people left in Konoha," he remarked. "I thought everyone was an idiot who had immediately decided Naruto was a criminal. I now see I was wrong… Although when I say wrong, I mean barely wrong."

"Well? What now?" Hinata asked, annoyed.

"Meet me at training field seven tomorrow at 6:00. And… Don't eat breakfast. If you do, you'll probably throw up."

All three Genin gaped at him. "HE'S A MADMAN!" Sasuke yelped.

Sakura giggled slightly. Hinata didn't react. She had barely noticed. _Naruto… Are you… Okay? _

- - -

Naruto attempted once more to move. He could have sworn the chains on his ankles went upward ever so slightly, but it didn't help much. _Kuso, I'm going to go insane if this lasts any longer! _Ignoring the fear he had every second of every day, he couldn't help but feel bored. _This is all your fault, Kyuubi! _

_ My fault? How is it my fault? _

_ Hmm, I don't know! _The remark was sarcastic. _Maybe if you hadn't destroyed Konoha, none of this would have happened! _

_ Whatever. Not my problem. _

Despite the fact that Kyuubi wasn't helping the situation at all (what can you expect, anyway?), Naruto managed to keep himself somewhat amused by annoying the demon fox. It was better than being absolutely silent and doing absolutely nothing, anyway.

Sunako came holding the injection device used as a replacement for food, and as usual, injected the formula into Naruto's neck. "Well?"

"Thank you, Sunako-dono," he murmured, only using –dono to avoid any problems that might occur otherwise.

Sunako silently left.

- - -

Hinata, Sakura, and Sasuke found themselves tied to posts and not getting any lunch. Kakashi had left them there with food in front of them. "STUPID BELL TEST!" Sakura shouted. "YOU JUST TOLD US NOT TO EAT BREAKFAST TO MAKE IT WORSE!"

Hinata glanced around. "Sasuke, see that branch by your hand? See if you can pull it back as far as possible and let go."

"Why?"

"Just do it."

Sasuke grabbed the nearby branch with his hand (it was hand with his arm tied firmly to the stump) and pulled it back a few feet, using his fingers to carefully grab the branch farther along by sliding it past. "Now let go," Hinata told him.

"But-"

"Sasuke, let go. You'll see what I mean."

Sakura smiled. "Nice thinking, Hinata."

"What? I don't understand what's going on!" Sasuke said.

"Just let go. You'll see."

Sasuke released the branch, which went flying and whacked another branch, which shook. A single fruit fell down on top of the box of food. The rice in side splattered into the air, flying directly towards each of them. "No! It's going the wrong direc- Uhg." The rice was splattered onto the ropes.

"Oops," Hinata murmured. "Miscalculation."

"OOPS? NOW KAKASHI-SENSEI IS GOING TO FIND OUT THAT WE-"

"Find out what? That you tried to break the rules?" Kakashi asked, suddenly in front of them.

"Uh… Umm…"

Kakashi smiled. It wasn't visable because of the mask, but somehow it was possible to see in his eyes. "Congrats. You pass."

"WHAT?"

- - -

Many days later, Sunako went over to Naruto, taking off the chains. "You're going on a C-rank mission with a group of rookies."

"Yeah, yeah," Naruto murmured, not really caring. Sunako handcuffed him and took him outside-this involved partially dragging him, as he could barely walk.

"Oh," Sunako added. "And if you fail, you will be punished severely, no matter who's fault it is. Understand?"

"Hai," Naruto replied quietly.

When they reached the gate, there was a man, Kakashi, Sakura, Sasuke, and…

"HINATA-CHAN!" Naruto cried, attempting to dash over, but he stumbled and fell. Sunako kicked him in the side.

"Wait until I remove the handcuffs, brat."

"What's with the putting handcuffs on a weak little boy that can hardly walk? Is he really going to be on this mission?" the man, apparently the client, asked with a sigh.

Not responding (he had gotten used to being insulted by now), Hinata answered for him: "He's not weak! He's really strong!"

"Yeah, and you can see through things," the man replied sarcastically.

"Actually, I can!" Hinata couldn't help but say. "It's my ke-"

"Whatever."

- - -

After everything was ecplained to Naruto, they started off, Naruto using Kyuubi's chakra to walk. Tazuna scratched his head and asked, "Why's a small brat like you in handcuffs?"

"Because they all hate me."

"We don't hate you, Naruto!" Hinata comforted, and gave him a hug. Naruto turned three shades of red out of nervousness. (MEGA OOC! HAHAHA!)

"Yeah, yeah, let's just keep going," Tazune muttered.

Naruto looked up. The sun was out, and it was extremely dry. Suddenly…

A splash.

He looked down to see a puddle. "Huh? Hinata, check this out."

"What's so strange about a puddle?" Tazuna asked, confused and annoyed.

"It's too dry," Naruto replied, staring at the water. "This isn't an ordinary puddle. On a day like this, it would have evaporated by now."

"True," Kakashi agreed.

"Then where'd it come from?" Sakura asked, nervous.

Naruto simply continued staring. "You two can come out of hiding now. It's obvious you're there, Mist ninja."

The bodies rose out of the water, which soon disappeared.

Without speaking, the one on Naruto's right attacked, scraping his right hand. Naruto didn't bother dodging. Instead, as a blade came down, about to touch his shoulder, he took out a kunai and knocked it to the side, before launching himself head-first at his opponent, who couldn't get out of the way in time, and fell victim to the attack.

The second one, who had attempted to come up from behind, was soon knocked to the ground by Hinata, who had closed their Tenketsu. The one in front of Naruto has passed out.

"Naruto, let me see your hand. Those weapons usually contain poison, we should get you back to the-" Kakashi started, but Naruto interrupted.

"No. I'm not failing this mission. If we do…"

Sunako's words echoed in his head. "Don't worry about poison. It won't affect me. You should know that by now."

Tazuna stared at him. "Won't affect you? What do you mean?"

"It doesn't matter what he meant," Kakashi said quickly. "However, Naruto, you should know better than to attack that fast. What if they were after a specific object or person? You never gave anyone a chance to find out."

Naruto took a step back, hanging his head. "Gomen, Kakashi-dono."

_Dono? _Hinata thought. _Why use that? It was a simple mistake, he didn't need to act like it's the end of the world. _

"Well, let's keep going," Kakashi said simply, and they continue the journey.

**A/N Naruto Rasengan, Kegebunshin, Sakura Sh-**

**Naruto: Why've you been singing the Naruto Ondo for two hours straight?**

**Silameara: Because I want to make sure nobody knows how embarrassed I am. **

**Naruto: Huh?**

**Silameara: Someone I don't even know and I sung "I'm a Little Teapot" in Art class! **

**Naruto: -stares blankly- Why?**

**Silameara: 'Cause we had to draw a teapot, and it was so TEMPTING! AND THEN EVERYONE STARED!**

**Naruto: I don't blame them. Not every day you see two people your age singing "I'm a Little Teapot" in art class…**

**Silameara: SHUT UP! NOBODY MUST KNOW!**

**Naruto: But the readers know just by looking at the author's notes.**

**Silameara: THEY DO? –faints-**

**Naruto: …She really IS crazy…**


	13. Zabuza

**A/N YAY NARUTO ONDO! Naruto rasengan, kagebunshin, Sakura Shan-**

**Naruto: STOP SINGING THAT!**

**Silameara: But I –sob- sing it because I like the way you sang it! You're such a –sniff- great singer!**

**Naruto: -headbangs wall- **

Almost at the Wave Village, Naruto suddenly froze, sensing somebody's presence. A strong presence. "Somebody's around here," he murmured. "A strong ninja. I can feel it. The air pressure's even changed slightly due to the high chakra levels."

"Are you sure?" Kakashi asked, looking around.

Naruto nodded. Hinata activated Byakuugen and looked around. "All I see is a kawaii little rabbit."

Naruto leapt into the bushes and pulled out said rabbit. "I still say something around here gives me the creeps."

"You're right. _You're _giving people the creeps," Tazuna mused.

"I'm serious," Naruto spat. "Something's odd here!" _Kyuubi, do something! _

_ All right, all right. I'll enhance your sense of smell, but it's only temporary. _

Naruto immediately turned around and stared straight into a tree. "Hinata, try looking there."

Hinata gasped as soon as she did. "It's a person!"

A man leapt down, landing with apparent ease. "Amazing that you managed to find me," he murmured. "Although I believe just about anyone could. I was hardly trying."

Kakashi satred. "You… You're Zabuza. The demon of the Hidden Mist."

"Right on, Kakashi… The Copy-ninja."

"What's with the drama about titles?" Naruto sighed. "Just defeat him already. If you don't, I will."

"Naruto, he's a Jonin. Stop acting like you're as powerful as he his!" Kakashi growled.

"Yeah, kid, listen to him. You shouldn't underestimate a demon," Zabuza said with a slight laugh.

Naruto smiled in response. "I don't see why you enjoy such a title. I'd rather be called Konoha's worst ninja ever than what I'm known as. However, I admit I hardly care," he sighed.

"Naruto, don't!" Kakashi insisted to no avail.

"Yeah, kid, don't play with fire," Zabuza added, drawing his blade.

"Really? Why not?" Naruto asked, still smiling. "When Konoha did what they did to me… Well, they've been playing with fire, too, so why shouldn't I? I think I've finally grasped why it's called the Fire village!" he added as an afterthought.

"Naruto, please stop!" Hinata begged. "You're scaring me!"

Naruto froze. "Sorry, Hinata… But you really must admit that it's true."

Sasuke gave a slight chuckle. "Naruto could beat that guy any day, Kakashi. After all…" He didn't finish, but Kakashi knew what the words would be.

"Just surrender the bridge builder and I won't have to kill you," Zabuza said.

"Umm…" Tazuna gave a nervous laugh.

Kakashi sighed. "Now that we now what he's after… Naruto, go ahead."

"Hai." Naruto stepped forward.

"You really think you can beat me?" Zabuza asked, and laughed. "A runt like you could never beat me!"

"Never underestimate me," he said simply, his eyes turning red and catlike. He flexed his fingers, now with claws, preparing for the fight.

"This is going to be too easy," Zabuze remarked. Before he could make a hand seal, however, Naruto had already gotten behind him, kunai out and ready to strike…

"Nice speed, but it won't beat me!" Zabuza swung the sword around, in an attempt to hit Naruto with it, but Naruto dodged. Zabuza altered the blade's course and managed to hit Naruto in the leg. It healed in an instant due to the fast flow of chakra he had going. "What the…" he heard Zabuza mutter, but it didn't seem to slow the rogue down.

Naruto turned in the air so he faced Zabuza, only to see the blade an inch away from him…

With a clash of metal, Sasuke's Demon Wind Shuriken deflected it.

"What would you do without me?" Sasuke asked, smiling.

"I wouldn't be doing anything, I suppose," Naruto laughed in reply. "Except being dead!"

"Little runts, you think you have the right to be called ninja when you're so weak you count on others for support?" Zabuza spat.

"Friends aren't a weakness," Naruto replied, smiling as he stared at what lay behind Zabuza.

"They're a strength!" Hinata added, plunging a kunai into Zabuza's back.

It changed into water. It had been a water clone.

"Kuso!" Naruto growled, whipping around to look for where the real one was hiding.

"Naruto! Behind you!" Sakura cried. Naruto turned around to see Sakura ram into another water clone, which disappeared as soon as she did.

Hinata dashed towards the next one, and blocked his Tenketsu. It was the real one.

"You think you're strong, huh?" Zabuza asked. "You just got lucky. I let my guard down because of how weak you are!"

"Admit it, Zabuza," Kakashi sighed. "You couldn't beat them."

Senbon needles whizzed from the tree towards Zabuza, striking him in the neck. He was dead. (Well, not really, you know what happens.)

"Thank you," a voice said. It sounded like a girl, but when Naruto turned, he saw a boy with an ANBU mask on. "I've been tracking him for ages. Now the Mist can finally stop worrying about him."

"A Mist ANBU?" Sakura said under her breath, but Naruto could hear her. (What's the difference between an ANBU, and a tracker, again?)

** A/N CLIFFHANGER! I'm not continuing 'till someone can tell me the difference between a mist ninja and a tracker, because I don't know. Ja'ne!**

**Oh, and if the story seems different, I'm under shock. I got mad at my acne cream and cut my long hair to shoulder length. **

**Naruto: -sweatdrops- She's insane.**

**Silameara: You just figured that out now?**


	14. The Second Sunako in Mist Nin Form

**A/N Tracker, hunter, UHG! STUPID ENGLISH DUB! YOU CALLED HAKU A TRACKER! Knew I shouldn't have tainted my brain with that stuff.**

_I have no idea what's going on, but maybe if I just nod and act like I do, someone will explain what a hunter ninja is…_ Nauruto thought.

"A hunter ninja. Did you come to dispose of Zabuza's body, then?" Kakashi asked.

_A hunter ninja hunts rogue ninja… That's the image I'm getting from this… _

"Yes, isn't it obvious?" he replied.

_That black hair reminds me a lot of Sunako… _

"Anyway… I must dispose of his body. Thank you again, for saving me the trouble of fighting him." _The little blond boy… He's pretty powerful, _Haku thought.

"I don't trust you," Naruto growled. Why should he? The hunter ninja looked too much like Sunako to possibly be trustworthy!

"Naruto, calm down…" Sakura murmured. "Sorry," she said to said hunter-nin. "Naruto hasn't trusted anyone much since… Well, long story…" She trailed off.

"I'm serious this time, Sakura."

"Naruto is your name?" the hunter asked. "I am Haku. Until we meet again… Leaf nin."

With that, he jumped from the tree, picked up the body, and vanished.

"I still don't trust that jerk," Naruto growled.

"Nor do I," Kakashi replied. "I true hunter nin would have got to work disposing of the body right there. He, on the other hand…"

"HE'S A FAKE!" Sakura gasped.

"A fake?" Sasuke repeated. "How did he get the mask, then?"

"Stolen. Isn't it obvious?" Hinata murmured.

"And Tazuna…" Kakashi growled. "Zabuza was after you."

"Well, I wouldn't know why."

"You have some explaining to do," Kakashi added.

"Oh, fine."

You know the story that Tazuna told. (COOL! TAZUNA TOLD STARTS WITH THE SAME LETTER! T!)

"Tazuna, you do realize that we have every right to leave you here right now so you can fend for yourself," Kakashi remarked.

"You wouldn't…"

"We-"

"Won't," Naruto finished for him. "Kakashi-sensei, if we go back without completing the mission… No matter what happens, The Fifth is going to…" He didn't continue, but Kakashi understood.

"Alright, we're going to continue the mission… But only for Naruto's sake," Kakashi sighed.

"What do you mean by that?" Tazuna asked.

"Long story," Sakura said.

"Don't tell him," Naruto said quickly. "The last thing I need is another person to hate me."

"What are you talking ab-"

"You have no right to ask questions, considering we're still guarding you when we shouldn't be," Kakashi informed the bridge builder.

Tazuna, beaten, sighed and followed them.

- - -

Sunako sighed and stared at the Fifth. "We keep threatening him with punishment, but we still haven't even decided what that is yet."

"Well, what do you think would be acceptable?" Ranmaru asked her.

"I don't know! You're Hokage!"

"And is it my job to get into every tiny affair that happens in the village? No, he is entrusted to you and Yuki, and you must decide what to do with him. I only take action if the need arises."

"I suppose so, but I don't know what to do! Flog him?"

"If you find it a good idea, yes."

"Y-you mean I can?" she asked, excitement in her voice.

"Yes."

**A/N I can see the reviews now… "WTF IS WRONG WITH YOU?" and "OMG, SUNAKO CAN'T DO THAT!" and "NO! I CAN'T BELIEVE YOU, YOU MORON!"**

**Hehe… So, if you had that in mind as a review, go ahead and do it. It's not going to change things. Anyway, we have to wait until Naruto does something wrong for such a thing to happen.**

**And knowing me, you can bet that in Ranmaru's mind, Naruto will be doing something wrong eventually!**

**COME ON FLAMERS! GIVE IT YOUR BEST SHOT! -evil laugh- **


	15. Who's Pain is Greater?

**A/N RUN, HAMSTER, RUN!**

**Naruto: Still obsessed with that toy hamster you got?**

**Silameara: YES! Go hamster, go hamster!**

**Naruto: Ahem… For those of you who have no idea what is going on, Sila got herself a toy hamster that has wheels which allow it to run around a plastic blue hamster wheel when you turn it on. You can also make it run on many other surfaces, like a table.**

**Silameara: IT'S SO KAWAII! -stares as it runs-**

**Naruto: On with the story, I suppose…**

**Silameara: Not yet! First off…**

**READ THIS NEXT PART! IT'S IMPORTANT!**

**I got a review that sounded like someone was asking what 'flog' means… Kind of hard to explain… I suggest looking it up on wikipedia, which has a very detailed description of what it is. Although I could try to explain, I suppose…**

**Ahem… Normally, flogging refers to being whipped on the back and chest multiple times. So, yeah, you can flame me for having Naruto under such a threat.**

**-evil laugh-**

**Naruto: Maniac…**

Naruto followed Hinata, hardly noticing when they got into a boat and started off. The one rowing looked frightened. "Why is everyone so quiet?" Naruto asked in a murmur.

"Because of Gato! If he finds out about me doing this… We're toast!" the one rowing the boat replied, worried.

"Whatever."

"Who's Gato?" Hinata asked, curious. All Tazuna had told them was that the village was poor. They didn't know why.

"I'll tell you when we get to my house," Tazuna replied.

As soon as they got off the boat, the man that had rowed them here left, not hearing the thank you from Tazuna. "Follow me," he said simply, and walked towards one of the houses.

- - -

Inside, the group was greeted by a young woman who was apparently Tazuna's daughter, Tsunami. "Welcome, welcome!" she said in a happy manner. The table was already set for dinner, so everyone sat down.

"So, Mr. Tazuna, who's Gato?" Sakura asked.

"Gato is-"

"Father, how many times must I tell you not to speak of that while Inari is in the room?" Tsunami asked, annoyed.

"Inari isn't in the room, though, Tsunami."

"He'll be coming soon!"

A small boy walked into the room-presumably Inari. Not a single smile appeared on his face. "Who are they?" he asked simply, before sitting down.

"These are some ninja your grandfather hired to guard him while the bridge is being built!" Tsunami replied with enthusiasm.

"My name is Hinata!" Hinata introduced politely.

"I'm Sakura," Sakura added.

"And I'm Sasuke," Sasuke said, trying to act calm, but it was quite exciting to be on your first C-rank mission.

"Kakashi," was all Kakashi said.

"Well?" Hinata nudged Naruto, who had remained silent. "Introduce yourself."

"I'm Naruto," he murmured. He couldn't help but wonder how long it had been since he had been in the presence of so many people that didn't think of him as a monster.

Inari said nothing. "Inari, introduce yourself, please. Don't be rude to our guests," Tsunami said.

"Why bother? They're all going to die, anyway. Everyone is this village is going to die. Gato will kill us all."

"Inari!" Tazuna said.

"Hey," Naruto cut in. "I don't know what your playing at, but whoever this Gato person is, he doesn't sound like a very good person."

"He isn't! He's the reason this village is so helpless!" Inari growled.

"Doesn't sound too tough, either," Naruto sighed.

"Stop talking like you can do anything about this!" Inari snapped.

"Why?" Naruto asked. "You think I'm useless?"

"You act all tough! Things are easier said then done!"

"And you should start believing in yourself and the people around you more!"

"Naruto…" Hinata whispered. "Please stop…"

Nobody heard her. Inari then said, "You act like everyone can be trusted!"

"Not everybody. Just most people!"

"You jerk, you act like you know what suffering is!" Inari shouted at him. "When you really don't!"

Silence.

"You really believe I haven't endured suffering before?" he asked quietly, before standing up and opening the door.

"Naruto, where are you going?" Sakura asked.

"Outside," he replied, shutting the door behind him.

"Inari, stop being so rude!" Tsunami ordered.

"Well, it's all true!" Inari said angrily.

"That was a bad choice of words," Kakashi sighed. "Telling Naruto he doesn't know what suffering is."

"Please don't say anything, Kakashi-sensei!" Hinata said quickly. "Naruto might not want you to-"

"Don't worry about it, I won't say a word," Kakashi replied quietly. "Naruto can explain himself."

"Hmph," was all Inari said before heading upstairs.

"Naruto…" Sasuke sighed. "I'm going outside to check on him."

"Me too!" Hinata said.

"Don't forget me!" Sakura added, before following them outside.

"Kakashi-san, what's this all about?" Tsunami asked.

"Well, let's just say that Naruto has slight problems back home…" Kakashi replied.

"Would that explain why he was in handcuffs when I first saw him?" Tazuna asked.

"Yes, it would, but I'd rather have Naruto tell you what's going on… He, some of the ANBU, and the Hokage are the only ones that know exactly what's been going on."

Tsunami sighed. "I apologize for my son's behavior."

"I'm sure it'll all be okay, don't worry," Kakashi replied.

- - -

Sunako sat on a chair in the AnBU headquarters, Yuki leaning on the wall beside her. A few other ANBU were there, only some of them having gotten assignments from the Hokage. "Sunako-chan," Yuki mused, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," Sunako lied. "Just wondering if the serum is finished yet."

"Nope, but if we're lucky it'll be done in the next year and a half or so."

Sunako nodded. What was really troubling her was guilt.

_No, I can't possibly feel guilty! He's a demon! He deserves this! _But she found it quite hard to convince herself that they were doing the right thing. "Yuki, do you think that brat is really a demon?"

"Obviously! You saw him at the war, didn't you?" he asked, shocked by the question.

"Yeah, I did," Sunako agreed. _If Yuki believes it's true, it must be, _she thought.

- - -

He tugged at the necklace, not noticing when Hinata, Sasuke, and Sakura came towards him. Naruto was sitting down, leaning against the wall. Hinata walked over. "Naruto, don't you want to come inside and have dinner? It's Udon."

"Yeah, you love ramen and other kinds of noodles, don't you?" Sasuke asked.

"I haven't eaten actual food in ages. Why start now?" he asked simply.

"Naruto, that's the precise reason you should eat something!" Sakura insisted. "At least come back inside!"

"Fine," Naruto sighed, and followed the three back in.

"Glad to see you're back," Kakashi remarked as they entered the building.

"Whatever," Naruto murmured, sitting back down at the table, not making a single movement towards the chopsticks.

"Come on, Naruto," Hinata murmured. "Please?" Suddenly, she had an idea-she didn't want to use it regularly, but it was for Naruto's own good. "It hurts knowing you aren't eating…" she added in a whisper.

Naruto jerked up. "Fine," he replied, finally grabbing the chpsticks.

"That was a dirty trick," Sakura murmured to Hinata, "But I suppose it was the only way, huh?"

"Thing is, it was true," Hinata replied softly.

Sasuke and Sakura gave a slight nod, understanding.

- - -

The day after, all of them were in the woods, training, other than Kakashi, who was guarding Tazuna.

"Come on, Hinata, are you going to attack me or not?" Naruto asked.

"I can't attack you!" she whimpered.

"Why not?" Naruto asked, confused. He heard Kyuubi laughing.

_What's so funny? _

_You, kit! You're already forgetting the emotions you humans have! _

_What do you mean by that? _

_She can't attack you because she thinks of you as a friend. Surely you knew that! _

_What? How come I didn't know that? I'm usually great at understanding other's feelings! _

_That's what makes this so funny! _

_SHUT THE FUCK UP! _

_Whatever. _

"Naruto, can we please stop training now?" Hinata asked.

"Yeah," Sakura and Sasuke agreed.

"Sure, you go back… I'm staying out here for awhile," Naruto replied. The other three understood and left, exhausted.

Naruto sat down against a tree, and pulled out a kunai. "I can end it all now… Have it all over with… No more chains… No more Sunako… No more fear…" he murmured.

"Naruto?" Inari called from behind a tree.

_Shit, was he watching that? _Naruto thought.

"What, Inari?"

"Why were you thinking of suicide just now?" he asked with a shaky voice.

"An easier question would be, 'Why not?' "

"Huh?"

Naruto sighed and explained everything… _Everything. _

A small knot of stress loosened as he did so.

**A/N Another chapter completed!**


	16. Confusion

**A/n Next chapter! YAY! And guess what? It's only this and the next chapter until the mission is over!**

Naruto smiled as he stood there leaning against the wood stack being used to build the bridge. Hinata was next to him, Sakura was chatting with Tazuna, and Sasuke was staring at Sakura, as if admiring her as her long pink hair swayed from side to side.

Inari had changed a lot since Naruto told him the story. After a brief conversation, it was like he wasn't the same person any more. Well, that was a good thing. He had found out Inari's history that night at dinner, as well, and couldn't help but feel sorry for him. It must have been awful to see a loved one die in front of you without being able to do anything about it.

Kakashi sighed, and read his book. "Kakashi-sensei, enough with the stupid book! It's really annoying!" Hinata growled.

"Yeah, I agree!" Sakura moaned. "You're such a pervert!"

Kakashi ignored them. "And then Yamakami said…"

"Hey, Kakashi-sensei, what if I told you I knew the author of that book?" Naruto asked, smiling.

"How could you possibly know the author?" Kakashi asked, looking up.

"You don't honestly think that quick mission after the war was spent doing nothing but hunting down some Mist nin, did you?" Naruto laughed. Hinata, Sakura, and Sasuke stared at him.

"What?" Kakashi gasped. "You seriously met-"

"Yeah, I met the King of Perverts, Jiraiya," Naruto replied. "He's a really weird old man that summons toads, has long grey hair, and gets beaten up by Tsunade all the time-"

"PLEASE TELL ME YOU GOT AN AUTOGRAPH!"

"Nope, but you'll have time to see him later. Jiraiya, Tsunade, and Shizune are going to go back to Konoha soon enough." He explained all that had happened on that mission.

"Can I see the necklace?" Hinata asked, curious.

"Sure," Naruto replied, and slid the necklace out of his sweater. It shined brightly in the light. Kakashi stared at it.

"There's a jutsu on it," he said simply.

"That would explain why the ANBU haven't found it yet," Naruto remarked. "But how come you can sense the jutsu and they can't?"

"Most likely they weren't looking for it," he replied casually. "But if they ever do, they'll find it in an instant."

"Really?" Naruto sighed. He took it off, and held it out to Hinata, who gasped. Smiling, Naruto said, "You take it for now, then."

"But it's-"

"Please, Hinata. I'd rather have it in your possession than the ANBU's or Ranmaru's."

"But Naruto…"

"Hinata, take it."

"I-I guess s-s-so…" she stuttered, and took the necklace.

"Great." Naruto said, smiling.

Suddenly, mist was everywhere. "Huh?" was all Tazuna could say. "This village is misty, but not this misty!"

"It's Zabuza!" Kakashi gasped.

"Oh, please! Not this idiot again!" Naruto sighed. "How'd he live?"

Sakura gave Naruto an 'I can't believe you don't know the answer to that question' look, and replied, "The hunter was on his side and didn't really kill him!"

"You brats are going to pay this time," Zabuza growled. "Haku, take out that kid with the blond hair as slowly and painfully as possible!"

"Yes, Zabuza-san," came the same calm voice. He stepped out of the mist (Haku, I mean), and Naruto gasped. "Sunako?"

"Who's Sunako?" Haku asked quietly.

"Uh… Nobody," Naruto replied quickly.

"Haku, do it already. And don't underestimate him. I'll take care of the others," Zabuza ordered.

"Yes, Zabuza-san."

"Following the orders of a moron like him?" Naruto asked. "Well, can't say I'm much better, but at least I'm at the threat of death, rather than doing it willingly."

"Whatever you're talking about," Haku replied, "If Zabuza orders me to defeat you… Then defeat you I will."

"Yeah, right," Naruto sighed. "What are you, anyway? A boy or a girl?"

Haku's expression couldn't be read because of the mask, but he obviously wasn't too happy. He formed a hand seal, and the water around the two of them rose, forming an array of mirrors.

"Naruto!" Hinata shouted.

"What's going on?" Sakura asked, confused.

"Don't even try to go help him. He's Haku's problem now. You four are mine," Zabuza growled.

"You leave Naruto alone!" Sasuke spat.

"You guys, calm down!" Kakashi murmured. "Hinata, you go attack the mirrors from the outs- Hinata?"

- - -

"What did you mean by 'I'm not much better?' " Haku asked quietly as soon as the mirrors rose.

"Konoha sees me as nothing but a monster. To most of them, especially the Hokage, I'm just a tool to be used whenever they see fit."

"That makes two of us… Although Zabuza thinks of me more highly than that." He removed the mask, revealing his face.

"You look just like Sunako," Naruto said, staring at him blankly. "And I… Hate Sunako."

"Sunako?"

"One of the ANBU acting as a jail guard," Naruto replied, and prepared to form a hand seal.

Hinata knocked him over. "Naruto!" she cried, hugging him.

"Hinata, what are you doing here?" he asked, desperately trying to hide his annoyance. _If she had just stayed outside the mirrors… _

"I had to see you! You're out of my sight much too often for comfort!" she sobbed. "Please, I don't want to lose you! Not again!" Naruto's arm was damp with tears as Hinata cried.

All his annoyance faded away. "It's alright," he said softly. "Nothing's wrong, everything's okay…"

Haku stared at them blankly. "People who care about you… If that girl was evil, and yet still loved you for who you were, would you love her back?"

Naruto was taken aback by the question. Hinata looked up, tears still forming in her eyes. Naruto slowly replied; "So that's why you work with Zabuza. I understand now. Nonetheless… This is where out wishes to protect our important people collide, isn't it?"

"Naruto, don't do it! I know what you're thinking! Don't use the Kyuubi's power! Please" she sobbed. "It's… Terrifying! Please! Don't!"

"Hinata…" he murmured, not knowing what to do. "I… I…"

"Please, Naruto, don't do it! Please!"

"Well? Are you going to attack or not?" Haku asked.

Naruto stared at the two of them, and slowly stepped away. "I… I…"

**A/N MAJOR CLIFFY! MWAHAHAHAHAHA!**

**Naruto: Uhg.**

**Silameara: What? Don't like cliffhangers? **

**Naruto: I think it's the readers who don't like 'em.**


	17. Love's Death

**A/N Next chappy…**

**Naruto: Great… She's using those nicknames for the words 'chapter' and 'signature' and 'cliffhanger,' etc. etc.**

**Silameara: YOU GOT A PROBLEM WITH THAT?**

**Naruto: -backs away slowly- Nope. –gives thumbs up to someone behind him- Now, people from the asylum!**

**People from the Asylum: GET HER!**

**Silameara: YOU SHALL NEVER TAKE ME ALIVE! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! -sets all of them on fire using author powers-**

**People from the Asylum: ACK! IT BURNS!**

**Naruto: Aww, man! **

Naruto stared at the two once more. "I… I don't want to scare you, Hinata," he said simply. _Kyuubi, temporarily cut off all my access to your power, would you? _

_ No way, baka. _

_ I can commit suicide right here, right now, and kill you with me, I suppose. _

_ You're such a pain to be sealed inside of, _Kyuubi mused. _If it weren't for how evil you can get sometimes, I don't think I could stand it. _

_ Me? Evil? _

_ Haven't you noticed your major personality change? Ah, well. _

Naruto felt the enormous loss of power come over him, and almost felt like he would faint out of exhaustion at first. _No… I have to… Help Hinata… I can't faint, _he thought, slowly getting used to the lack of power. _I'll handle this with my own chakra! _

_ And you'll die, too. _

_ If you don't shut up right now… _

_ You do realize I could possibly get that collar off your neck, right? _

_ What? _

_ Just kidding! _

Naruto felt a pang of disappointment, but nonetheless focused on the fight. Haku backed into the mirror behind him… And copies of him appeared in every one.

"What? Which one is the real one?" Naruto gasped.

Hinata used Byuakugen in an attempt to find out. "I think… They're… I can't tell! They all look exactly the same!"

"You'll never find out which one is real," was all Haku said, and drew his hand back, senbon needles ready.

"Look out!" Naruto yelped, shoving Hinata out of the way of the flurry of needles, and barely managing to avoid them himself.

Hinata fell to the ground, but immediately got back up again, this time dodging the next set of needles on her own. "What now?"

"This makes me wish that bunshins were solid," Naruto sighed, still dodging.

"Even if bunshins were solid, you still would not be able to defeat me," Haku said simply.

_Kit, just use my chakra! I can melt those mirrors in an instant! _

_ No! I told Hinata I wouldn't! _

Naruto picked a random mirror and charged at it, Hinata doing the same to another. He threw three different shuriken, but all it did was seemingly go right through the mirror where he couldn't reach them. "Kuso!"

"What now?" Hinata asked, worried.

"We hope that somehow the others can take down the mirrors from outside!"

- - -

"Gokakyu no Jutsu!"

Nothing was working. Sasuke tried once more, but he missed once more, the mist blocking his view.

"Sasuke! Behind you!" Sakura cried. Sasuke turned around just in time to see the flash of a blade.

"Gokakyu no Jutsu!" He was running out of chakra. The fight was getting more difficult, and Zabuza wasn't showing any signs of weakness.

Sakura tossed a few shuriken at shadows that appeared in the mist, but it turned out to be her imagination or a water clone every time. "Kakashi-sensei?"

Kakashi was nowhere in sight. The pair were back to back, looking around, but nothing was working. Suddenly, Sakura saw a figure in front of them.

"Kakashi-sensei! Sasuke! Help!" she cried as the blade was swung, almost getting her in the neck. She ducked, and her hair flew upwards as she did so…

_Slice! _

"Huh?" Sasuke gasped, looking at the pink hair floating to the ground, horrified. He turned around, and leapt out of the way of the sword. _Now what? _He thought. Sakura was okay, at least. She was following him… But her hair had been cut to shoulder-length by the sword. "Are you okay, Sakura?"

"Y-yeah, I'm fine."

A kunai came towards them, but didn't hit either one. Instead, it flew over to Zabuza, but Zabuza dodged with apparent ease.

Kakashi stepped close enough to be seen through the mist. "I thought I'd never find you two," he mused. "Zabuza was trying to kill you by separating you from me, it seems."

"Whether you understand my plans or not," Zabuza said, "It makes no difference, since you're going to die, anyway."

Sasuke hesitated for a moment, then took something out of his bag. "Demon Wind Shuriken! Windmill of Shadows!" (Yeah, I know, stupid English dub, I can't remember the Japanese name, sadly.) He threw it, but seemingly to no avail as Zabuza grabbed it.

As I said, SEEMINGLY to no avail.

The second Shuriken, in the shadow of the first, was caught in his other hand. Sakura threw a bunch of kunai.

Zabuza blocked it with the shuriken he was holding. "Surely you can do better than that!"

Kakashi took his own forehead protector and lifted it so his other eye was revealed. Sasuke gasped. "Why-how do you have Sharingan?"

"That isn't a story for right now, Sasuke."

Sakura was staring, open-mouthed. Kakashi took out a scroll, purposely pricked his finger against his vest so it would bleed, and slid the blood over the scroll. With a single hand seal, a group of dogs was summoned.

"And what do you propose to do with those, Kakashi? You can't see me as it is," Zabuza remarked, fading into the mist.

"Yes, but my hounds can smell you," he replied calmly.

- - -

"Hinata-chan!" It was too late. The needles hit Hinata, and she fell to the ground. "No!" Naruto yelped.

"Naruto-kun, I'm sorry… I wanted to help… All I did was get in your way…"

"Hinata, it's okay! Stop acting like you're going to die!" he shouted, kneeling beside her.

"Naruto… I… I lo-" She didn't finish. Her eyes closed.

"Is this the first time you have seen a comrade die in battle?" Haku asked. "In the world of Shinobi, you must be willing to accept that that could happen at any time."

"No…" Naruto sobbed. Never again would he see those lavender eyes staring at him… Never again would the girl he loved smile at him or hug him… Never again would she be able to tell him that she still cared, regardless of what Konoha thought…

Never again would he have a reason to live. Never. "She was all I had…" he whimpered softly. "And you took her from me. My one reason to go on, no matter what happened…" He hugged the seemingly lifeless body. "Oh, Hinata! You can't die! You just can't!"

"Is there something wrong?" Haku asked quietly. "You're a ninja. I Hinchuuriki, at that. Zabuza told me. Why do you mourn for the loss of one friend?"

"I love her. That's why. If it weren't for her, I would never have gone on. I would have somehow ended it all, rather than living like a servant to some baka known as Ranmaru that somehow became Hokage. She was my only reason for living… And now… I may as well die."

"I know how you feel," Haku said after a short period of silence. (You know the story.) He told Naruto all about what had happened, between the wars, the hiding, the deaths, and how Zabuza had appreciated Haku for what he was.

"Losing a purpose is worse than death," Naruto agreed quietly. "If only I had used Kyuubi's power… Even if she had hated me for it… At least she would be alive!" he sobbed.

"I'm… Sorry…" was all Haku could say. He understood what it was like to lose your purpose, and couldn't help but feel sorry for Naruto.

"Regardless, I will get revenge," Naruto growled, standing up. _Kyuubi… _

_ I know, kit. _

His eyes turned blood-red. "Somehow I feel that if we had met in another time or place… We could have been friends."

"Maybe," Haku sighed, and prepared to throw senbon needles at him.

Naruto attacked him. The mirrors shattered.

All that remained of Haku was a corpse.

- - -

Zabuza had barely avoided the Chidori. The mist cleared due to his injuries from the dogs, though. All of them turned and gasped at what they saw.

Surrounded by shattered pieces of the ice-mirror… Was Naruto. And two dead bodies. One was Haku. The other was…

"HINATA!" both Sasuke and Sakura shouted at the same time. They dashed over, as Kakashi and Zabuza watched, dumbstruck with confusion.

"Naruto, what happened?" Sakura asked, kneeling beside him, and watching as he hugged Hinata. There were tears in her emerald green eyes.

"She's dead," Naruto sobbed. "Haku got her with the needles and I couldn't do anything about it!"

"Dead?" Sasuke repeated, just standing there, shocked.

"That's impossible! What about the Kyuubi? How could this possibly happen?" Sakur asked, although still crying at the same time.

"She asked me not to… Said it scared her… Oh, what am I going to do know? I can't live without Hinata!" he sobbed. "Hinata, wake up! Please wake up!" He shook the lifeless body.

"Naruto, she isn't coming back…" Sasuke murmured, tears falling to the ground.

"She can't be dead! She can't be! She just fainted, she's alive! She has to be alive!"

"Naruto, her heart isn't beating, and she's cold. Hinata is dead."

"No!" he whimpered. "Please… Wake up… Wake up… Finish what you were about to tell me before you collapsed, Hinata… Don't die…"

Zabuza laughed. "Well, even though Haku is dead, and I've lost a valuable tool, at least that annoying Hyuuga is gone, as well! Now I just have to take you all out myself!"

Naruto slowly turned around. "Haku… He did everything he could for, you even killed Hinata when he obviously didn't really want to, and you're just going to act like you lost a kunai somewhere on the battlefield?" Naruto gave a hateful glare at Zabuza. "I hate people who think… That they can use others as tools…" he growled. Sakura, Sasuke, and Kakashi looked on silently. "Haku had dreams that couldn't be fulfilled because he was too busy trying to help yours come true… And now you're acting like that's all okay!"

"Stop talking as if you know what Haku was feeling. He was perfectly happy throwing his own wishes away for me!"

"If only you knew," Naruto replied, eyes bright red once more.

Sasuke stared at Zabuza. _Now he's done it… Naruto's going to rip him to shreds for saying that… _

"I don't believe it," an unfamiliar voice remarked. "I hire you for your skill, and now one of you has already been killed? What do you take me for? An idiot? I shan't be paying you now!"

"WHAT?" Zabuza barked, turning around to see a short man. "Gato, you double-crosser!"

"So that's Gato…" Sakura whispered, still under shock from learning about what happened to Hinata.

Gato stepped forward, close to Haku's lifeless body. "Pathetic." He jabbed the corpse with a cane he was holding. "Jerk, you almost broke my arm! I only wish you were able to feel that!"

"YOU'RE THE JERK!" Naruto spat, wanting nothing more than to kill Gato.

"Naruto, calm down!" Kakashi ordered. "The seal could break if you get too worked up!"

"I don't care!" he replied angrily. "I'm going to kill those two!"

** A/N I know, I know, I said I was going to end the Wave Village mission here, but turns out, I wanted to leave you at another cliffhanger. Sorry 'bout that!**


	18. Fourty

**A/N Alright, alright, I promise you that THIS time the chapter will be the last for the Wave Village mission! (Mostly 'cause I'm getting tired of working so hard to write the fight scenes. It's harder than it seems, you know!)**

"N-n-naruto…Kun…" came a faint voice.

Naruto instantly turned around, eyes wide. "Hinata?"

"She's alive!" Sasuke gasped, and smiled. So did Sakura.

"Naruto-kun… What… Happened?"

Naruto didn't seem to hear her. Instead, he hugged her. "HINATA! You're alive!"

Gato looked at them like they were crazy. "All that fuss because one person didn't die? Big deal."

"That's it…" Naruto growled. "NOW I'm going to kill him!"

Kakashi grabbed Naruto by the shirt collar. "Don't, you baka! Calm down!" He couldn't help but get frustrated by the fact that Naruto wouldn't forget about the comments; a ninja shouldn't get worked up because of something like that.

"Naruto…"

"Hinata, stop! You're on the verge of death, in case you didn't know! Don't waste your energy!" Sakura murmured.

"Figures. Haku couldn't kill. He was too soft for his own good," Zabuza remarked in a disappointed tone.

"You…" Naruto growled, staring at Zabuza with blood-red eyes. "He gave everything up for you! And you just threw it away, like it was nothing!"

Zabuza merely stared, but Naruto continued: "You act like Haku respected you because of your power! Haku respected you because you accepted him for who he was! Am I to understand that you really didn't accept him, and that it was all just a lie? That he made you his most important person for nothing?" Tears of rage and sadness fell from Naruto's eyes.

"Just… Just shut up!" Zabuza growled, guilt evident in his voice. "How would you know this?"

"How could I not know this?" Naruto asked angrily. "If only you knew what I've been through, you'd realize that me and Haku are one and the same! Treated like tools without lives and dreams! Don't you feel even a small amount of guilt? Because if you don't, I suppose you deserve the title, 'Demon of the Hidden Mist!' Only a monster wouldn't feel guilty of such things!"

And then… Tears fell to the ground. They weren't Naruto's, Sakura's, Sasuke's, Kakashi's, or even Hinata's. They were Zabuza's.

"So much for a ninja," Gato sighed. "I thought you were an S-class criminal. Turns out I hired some wimp who can't take the death of another wimp."

"You…" Zabuza growled. "Shut your trap!" He turned to Naruto. "Alright, I admit it. I've always thought of Haku as more than a tool, but I just couldn't bring myself to admit it." He tore the bandages off from around his face, and stared angrily at Gato. "You're going to pay for hitting Haku with that cane, you bastard."

"Oh, really?" A group of men got in front of Gato-a group of hired thugs.

"Wh-what now?" Sakura asked, frightened. "We're outnumbered, Hinata needs to heal, and I'm the only one who can heal her!"

"You can heal?" Naruto asked.

"Itachi taught me. Long story! But back to the original problem-we're outnumbered!"

"They don't look like actual ninja," Sasuke remarked. "I think we can take them."

"Naruto…" Hinata rasped. "Gomen… Gomen…"

"What are you apologizing for?" Naruto asked, holding her hand. "It's my fault for not trying harder to protect you. I'm the one who should be apologizing."

"I was being selfish when I asked you not to use Kyuubi's power…" She coughed.

"Hinata, please save your energy!" Sakura insisted.

Naruto got up and turned to face Gato's men. "Sasuke, let's go get them."

"Hai, this is going to be fun," Sasuke remarked. "Shall we have a contest?"

"One to defeat the most wins?"

"Done."

Zabuza was charging through the crowd, killing just about everyone who stood between him and Gato. A few of the thugs were attacking Naruto and Sasuke. "Hey, Sasuke, let me show you a trick I learned from Jiraiya!"

"Sure."

"Rasengan!" Naruto charged through the crowd, the orb in his palm causing most of them to fall down on contact. "Ha, that makes thirteen points for me!"

"Gokakyu no Jutsu!" Sasuke used up some of his remaining chakra to do the jutsu. "And fifteen for me!"

"I WON'T LOSE!"

"NEITHER WILL I!"

"Those idiots," Sakura sighed. "But as long as those thugs aren't actual ninja, I suppose everything is okay."

"True," Kakashi agreed. "Hey, look over there!"

Everyone, even Naruto and Sasuke, had stopped to look. Zabuza was about to kill Gato… When two thugs stuck spears in his back. And yet… "You think you can stop me because of that?" Zabuza asked in a shout. "Not likely!" He sliced through the two thugs, before finally confronting Gato once again. Gato was shivering and backing towards the edge of the unfinished bridge.

"When I die, at least you'll come with me!" Zabuza added, and stabbed Gato in the heart. Gato yelped in pain and fell over the side of the bridge. Zabuza collapsed. Naruto's mouth opened wide with shock.

"You've got to be kidding… Just when he had changed…" Naruto gasped.

"Kakashi," Zabuza coughed. "Please… Take me to him… I want to see him… One last time…" Kakashi nodded and took the spears out of Zabuza's back before carrying him to Haku and putting him down. Zabuza stared at Haku, and said, "Gomen, Haku… Now I only wish… That I could go to where you're going to go… Goodbye… Forever…" Snow began falling.

"What?" Tazuna gasped. "That's impossible! It's not the right season to snow!"

"Haku…" Zabuza murmured. "Are you… Crying?" He closed his eyes.

"He's dead…" was all Sakura could manage to say.

Naruto stared at the ground. "So many deaths… It's too much to bear!"

_Hehe, what's so bad about it? _

_ SHUT UP, YOU DAMN FOX! _To everyone else, it was one was the most confusing things they had ever seen. All Naruto said was, "Damn you, stupid fox, stop laughing!" before putting his hand to his head and desperately trying to block out what Kyuubi was saying.

"Naruto, what's wrong?" Sasuke asked.

"N-nothing…" he replied hastily, trying to regain his composure. "Sorry about that…"

"Hey, now who's supposed to pay us?" one of the remaining thugs asked. "You'll just have to pay with your lives!"  
"Great… What now?" Sakura whimpered. Kakashi merely pointed to the other side of the bridge.

"Hey!" Inari shouted. "You want to kill them, you have to go through us!"

There were cheers from the rest of the wave villagers.

- - -

"Naruto! Promise you'll visit soon?" Inari asked in a sob.

"Well… I can try… After all, those ANBU are a bunch of bakas. I shall just annoy them until they surrender!" he said in the most serious tone he could manage.

"Naruto, that isn't funny!" Sakura shouted, and punched him.

"ACK!" Naruto yelped. "What was that for?"

"FOR JOKING ABOUT SOMETHING THAT ISN'T FUNNY!"

"So I suppose you won't be able to visit anytime soon, huh?" Inari asked, disappointed, tears falling faster now. "Will I ever see you again?"

"Don't worry," Naruto assured him, smiling. "I have a feeling we'll meet again someday. Maybe not soon, but someday."

"G-goodbye, Naruto… I'll never forget what you taught me!"

"Bye, Inari." The Leaf Nin walked across the bridge, Hinata supported by Naruto, since she could hardly walk. The last thing Inari saw before they left was the gleam of the metal collar around Naruto's neck.

- - -

"I'm telling you, Naruto, Australia is a country!" Sasuke insisted.

"It's a continent, you dope!"

They were approaching the gates, and they had done all they could to temporarily forget about what would happen once they entered them. Kakashi was walking silently beside them. The two Chuunin guarding the gate watched as they approached.

"YOU'RE BOTH BAKAS!" Sakura shouted at them. "IT'S BOTH!"

"You don't need to break my eardrums, Sakura…" Naruto muttered.

"Ouch!" Hinata yelped as Naruto forgot she was leaning on him and pushed her into a tree.

"Hinata!" he yelped. "Gomen, are you okay?"

"Y-yes, I'm f-fine, she replied.

One of the Chuunin guarding the gate pulled a walkie-talkie out of his pocket. "They're back," he said.

"Right," came the reply.

Naruto sighed as he watched two ANBU approach. _Here we go again, _he thought. "Sakura, can you take Hinata for me?"

"Uh… Sure," Sakura replied, letting Hinata lean on her instead.

_Kuso, now Naruto's going away again! _Hinata thought, staring as Naruto didn't even bother to fight Sunako as she put the handcuffs back on his wrists.

Naruto silently followed Sunako, Yukinojo walking behind them. _This is so stupid, _he thought, annoyed. _One moment I'm arguing with Sasuke about Australia, and the next I'm in this situation. Uhg. _

_ Hehe, this is amusing, watching your suffering. _

_ You're the most annoying being in the history of the world. _

_ I can't hurt you physically, so at least I'm doing the next best thing. _

_ Shut it… _

- - -

Same chains… Same cell… Same mask… Same wall a few yards past the bars to stare at… _I'm going to go insane, _he thought. _This is so boring! _

"Hey! Naruto!" a voice whispered.

"Just great… Now I'm hearing things…" he muttered.

"Naruto, over here!"

"Sakura? What are you doing here?" Naruto gasped.

She stepped into view, along with Sasuke. "Hinata was worried, so we decided we'd check up on you."

"Where is Hinata?" Is she okay? How'd you get in here?" All was said in whispers.

"One question at a time!" Sasuke said.

"Hinata's in the hospital, and she's fine. We snuck in here," Sakura replied.

"Then you should really go before-"

"What are you two dong here?" Yuki asked, also coming into view.

"Uh… We… Uh…" Sakura stuttered. Sasuke remained silent.

Naruto thought quickly. _What could I say to get them out of trouble? _

"I asked them to come. It's my fault," he said simply.

"Naruto, what are you saying?" Sakura asked, eyes wide.

"Should have known you'd be that selfish," Yuki sighed, staring at Naruto. "You two had better leave," he added.

Sakura and Sasuke gave Naruto horrified looks, both thinking the same thing as he left. "Sakura, this is all our fault," Sasuke said after they were far away from the building.

"I know! Now they're going to do something bad to Naruto!" Sakura whimpered. "All because he didn't want us to get into trouble! Why does he always have to be so selfless? He cares more about us than he does his own safety!"

"How are we going to tell Hinata?"

"How should I know?"

- - -

Naruto stepped forward, hands held firmly behind his back by handcuffs. He knew what was coming; Yuki had told him. And since Sunako was busy, it was his job to do it. Tears fell from his eyes. "Please don't," he whimpered. "Please don't do this!"

No response. "Please, don't! Please!" he sobbed, shivering with fear.

"You can beg all you want, but it won't change anything."

"I'll do anything-just don't do this!" His heart skipped a beat as he saw Yuki reach for something that was being handed to him.

"No… Please!" he sobbed. "Don't do this!"

"Hold him against the wall," Yuki ordered.

"Hai," two others replied, and followed the command.

Naruto shut his eyes tightly. "Please…"

"How many is it going to be, anyway?" the ANBU on Naruto's left asked.

"To start… Fourty."

_No, _Naruto thought, terrified.

Yuki was holding a whip in his hands.

**A/N Major cliffhanger here… You guys must hate me. And the way, if I get one flame about the plot, I shall reply with…**

** "YOU KNEW THIS WAS COMING, SO WHY THE –beep- DID YOU READ IT, YOU –beep- IDIOT?"**

**Just wanted you to be aware of that… I know, I must work on my temper…**


	19. Sand

**A/N YOU FLAMERS ARE BUGGING ME BECAUSE OF THE PLOT??? BAKAS, IF YOU DON'T LIKE IT, DON'T READ IT! NOW STOP FLAMING ME ABOUT THAT! GO READ SOME OTHER STORY IF YOU DON'T LIKE THIS ONE!**

**Oh, and yaaaaaaayme, your review has officially made me feel the most awkward I have ever felt in my life. Congrats. XD**

Naruto waited, just wanting to get it all over with. _Kyuubi, do something! _

_Nope. _

_Come on, damn fox! _

_Nope. _

_What do you want me to do, beg? _

_Yes. _

_FINE! PLEASE DO SOMETHING! _

_Nope. _

_YOU LOUSY, USELESS, ANNOYING BAKA! _

_I take that as a compliment. _

_Why you… ACK! _

He gasped in pain-it felt like his back was on fire. _What just happened? _

_And you call me a baka. It's called a whip, kit. And it's fun to see it used on you… Or anyone, for that matter. _

_You piece of sh- _He clenched his teeth as pain seared through him once more.

_Come on, just scream, it'll make this so much more fun! _

_Kyuubi, you had better shut-ACK! _

_Even though you aren't really screaming, at least you are in your head. And since I can hear that, I suppose it's okay. Hehe, three so far, 37 more to go! _

_Why you-ouch! _He could feel blood seep out of the wounds.

_Four, _Kyuubi said simply, keeping count.

_Stop-erk-counting! _

_Five. _

_You're making this ten times worse than it should be! _

Naruto's eyes were closed as tight as he cold get them. Six. He felt like he just wanted to cry out in pain, but that would do nothing but satisfy Yuki.

_Seven, _Kyuubi counted.

_STOP THAT! _

_You should be thanking me for keeping count. _

_Just shut- _He stopped in mid-speech

_Eight. _

Ignoring Kyuubi, he forced his eyes open. All he could see was the wall in front of him. And then…

_Nine. _

_Shut to fuck up! _

Ten. Eleven. Twelve. Would it never end? Kyuubi's counting only made things worse…

- - -

"What do you think they're doing to Naruto right now?" Sakura asked, worried.

"I hope that whatever it is, it's using WORDS rather than violence…"

"I doubt that, Sasuke."

Hinata cut in. "What're we going to do? Naruto's in pain, I just know it!"

"Hey, is something wrong?" a medical ninja asked.

"Who are you?" Sasuke asked in return.

"Tsunade."

- - -

It was halfway done… _Twenty, _Kyuubi made sure to announce.

_Please just shut up. _

Yuki paused. "Well? Is he still conscious?"

"Hai," the ANBU on Naruto's right replied.

"Good."

"Please…" Naruto whimpered. "No more, it hurts!"

"That's the point, brat."

"I'll do anything you say… Just stop!"

"Why should anyone believe a demon?" Yuki asked simply.

"I'm not a demon… I never did anything wrong… Kyuubi did… Please… Stop… I can't take it…"

Yuki didn't seem annoyed by Naruto's begging. _That jerk probably enjoys it, _Naruto thought angrily. _And yet I just have to get this to stop… I can't take it! _

_I'm still not helping, no matter what you say, _Kyuubi said simply, blocking off Naruto's access to the demon chakra.

Frustrated by Kyuubi's not helping, Naruto decided to stall Yuki. "Please stop…" he whimpered.

Another flash of pain. "Please… Stop…"

And another. And then, of course: _Twenty-two, I believe that one was, _Kyuubi announced.

- - -

"Naruto told us about you, Jiraiya, and Shizune!" Hinata gasped.

"He did?" Tsunade asked, cocking her head to the side. "Did you see the necklace?"

"H-hai… But… He got so worried about the ANBU finding it eventually…" she murmured, and took the necklace out of her pocket. She has felt too guilty to wear it.

"Ah… He did… Well, the jutsu to hide it from anyone who disliked the wearer has probably worn off by now, so I suppose it's for the best," she sighed. "I'll heal those wounds of yours up in a second, don't worry."

And just like that, she healed the wounds. In a minute, though, not a second.

"What do you think they did to Naruto?" Sakura asked after explaining the epidemic in the ANBU headquarters.

"Probably nothing," Tsunade replied just a little too quickly. "Nothing at all."

"Tsunade-sama, please tell us!" Hinata begged. "I must know if he's okay!"

"Trust me, they probably didn't do anything!" she said once more. "Hinata, you can leave the hospital at any time now, if you'd like… Bye!" Tsunade left as quickly as possible.

"It must be bad, since she tried to hide it like that," Sasuke groaned.

"Let's g-go…" Hinata murmured. They left the hospital. Suddenly…

"Ouch!" Hinata yelped, bumping into someone with red hair and black rings around his eyes. (Man, that totally gave it away, didn't it?) "G-gomen!"

"Watch where you're going," the boy said in an unreadable tone.

Annoyed, Hinata stared blankly at him. "I said I was sorry!" she spat. "In case you haven't noticed, I'm _not _I a very good mood right now! Why don't _you _watch it?"

"Hinata, calm down!" Sasuke insisted. "You don't need to take out your worry about Naruto on somebody you don't even know!"

"Hey…" Sakura said quietly. "You're a Sand nin!"

"Yes, I am. Don't you know about the Chuunin exams?" he asked them, tone not changing once.

"Chuunin exams?"

- - -

Naruto shivered. One more…

_Damn it, that makes fourty. Now all the fun is gone, _Kyuubi remarked as Naruto flinched in pain.

The two ANBU beside him finally put handcuffs on his wrists and let him fall to the floor, shivering. _It's finally over, _he thought, ignoring the blood dripping to the floor. _Finally… _

"Don't relax just yet, brat," Yuki said. "It isn't over."

"B-but you said only fourty!"

"Fourty to start with," the ANBU that had been on Naruto's left explained.

"Anyway, a lot of the villagers have been terrified that you'll escape. We have to show them that they're wrong." He grabbed the handcuffs and pulled Naruto to his feet. "Then, when we get back, it's twenty more."

Weak from blood loss, Naruto didn't even attempt to get away as Yuki and the other two forced hi outside the headquarters.

_Those bakas think I'm weak! _Kyuubi growled.

_It's your own fault for not supplying me with any chakra. _

_Fine, take it now! _

_No, I think I'd rather annoy you by NOT taking it. _

_Kit… You're going to pay for that when I get out… I won't kill you fast, I'll give you the most painful death possible! Better yet, I'll make you my slave! _

_You keep living in your imagination. You're not getting out. _

Naruto merely looked at the ground, not caring about all those who stared.

It was then, right after learning about the Chuunin exams and meeting Temari and Kankurou (the Japanese spelling, I think), that Hinata saw Naruto. She was the only one facing in that direction… And… "Sakura-chan, Sasuke-kun… L-look!" She pointed to Naruto and the ANBU.

Suddenly, she felt dizzy with guilt and shock. Hinata fainted.

"What? Hinata!" Sasuke gasped. "What's wrong?"

Sasuke, Sakura, and the sand siblings turned to see what was happening. Both felt overrun with guilt. "KYA!" was all they could manage.

Gaara was slightly confused. _I wonder what he did to deserve such a thing… It's quite obvious by the pattern of those cuts that they're whip marks… And by the look of things, it was done by an ANBU, no less… _"Hey, who is that kid?" he asked the leaf ANBU, as the trio of Genin didn't seem likely to answer, one being out cold and the other two under shock.

Naruto collapsed, unable to walk any more. "He's nobody important," Yuki replied quietly while the other ANBU attempted to wake up the now unconscious Jinchuuriki.

"He seems pretty important if he's in chains," Gaara mused, still not changing his tone of voice.

"Gaara, it might be classified information, you shouldn't act like everything can be told to you…" Temari murmured.

Yuki sighed. "It's alright, it isn't really classified… But I don't see why you really care. He's nothing but a monster."

"Doesn't look like much to me," Gaara remarked.

One of the ANBU finally got Naruto to wake up, and forced him to stand back up. "Please…" Naruto moaned. "Stop… It's Kyuubi's fault… Not mine…" That was all they heard before the ANBU dragged him away.

"Kyuubi? He's a demon, though…" Gaara murmured. "And there's only one reason that someone would blame a demon's crimes on an innocent person."

"You don't mean to tell us-" Kankurou gasped. "That he's the same as you?"

"Why?" Sakura sobbed, clearly not hearing the conversation between the Sand nin. "He's innocent, he's not a monster!'

"Please tell me Hinata will wake up and forget she saw that…" Sasuke moaned. "She's going to be really upset…"

Gaara walked up to them. "Is that boy, by chance…" he started to say, "A Jinchuuriki?"

**A/N Gaara's finally here! YAY! Anyway, the next chapter will come as soon as I finish it. I also need to make it clear that those who don't like the plot should STOP READING!**


	20. The Forest of Death

**A/N I have changed my penname due to getting tired of my normal one… Although it's hardly changed, I just added "the Crazy Chibi" to it… Anyway, that's all you must know. ON WITH THE STORY!**

"Hold him against the wall again, this time the other way," Yuki ordered, and the ANBU near Naruto obeyed without hesitation. Naruto found himself facing Yuki. _Oh, don't tell me… _

His wounds stung as they touched the wall, making him feel like he would die from simply that alone. But now he knew for sure he was going to die… There was no way he's possibly get through this… "Please don't do it!" he begged.

- - -

Gaara silently listened to the story the trio of leaf nin had to tell. _So there are people who have had it worse than me, huh? _

"But that means he's like Gaara!" Temari gasped.

"What?" Hinata asked.

"I'm also a Jinchuuriki," Gaara explained, tone still not changing. "Although I will admit that I don't have it as bad as he does."

"What?" Hinata gasped. She recovered after only a few seconds, however. "I can't believe that Konoha is full of so many bakas…" she added quietly.

"Don't worry about it," Temari mused. "All Jicnhuuriki are treated the same no matter where they live."

"Temari…" Gaara growled, shocking Kankouro and Temari.

"Uh… Gomen, Gaara, really-" Kanouro started to say, but Gaara interrupted.

"Don't make her feel worse, you two," was all Gaara said before turning his attention back to the other three.

The two older siblings were shocked. "Umm… Could you excuse us for a moment?" Temari asked, and pulled Kankouro off behind the fence nearby.

"What is it, Temari?"

"Gaara! He would normally have used his sand to rip us to shreads for saying that, but this time-"

"I see what you mean," Kankouro sighed. "This isn't like him at all."

- - -

He could hardly bear the cuts… Blood was dripping to the ground, and Naruto was aching all over, as well as being hardly conscious with blood loss. "H-help…" he moaned, knowing no one would answer. It just felt better to say it for some reason.

Five days later…

Sunako walked over. "The Chuunin exams are going on right now."

"What of it?"

"The written exam is over, and those who passed are going to the next part." Sunako briefly explained the Forest of Death.

"And?"

"You're going to go around the Forest of Death and attack whoever you find."

"Why?"

"Because only the best must pass the exam. The villages taking part in the exam all agree that this should add an extra challenge…"

"Th-they know that-"

"No, they don't know the details. Just that a monster will be released into the forest to attack all who come by."

"I wouldn't happen to be the monster you're referring to, would I?"

"Yes, you would."

"Has Hinata's group passed?"

"Don't know. That isn't something I really bothered looking into. Whoever passes passes, and that's that. Understand? And when you go into the forest, be as quiet as possible in front of everyone. It's part of the test to see if they underestimate you."

"H-hai…"

"Good."

- - -

The day of the exams arrived (I'm too lazy to write the in-between stuff).

There were multiple teams chatting happily about strategies and what-not. "They said a monster would be in the forest…"

"Yeah, a scary one…"

"Some sort of powerful ninja, apparently."

"Like who?"

"Hey, look!" The random ninja (who plays no major role in the story, in case you were wondering) pointed to a pair of ANBU walking along, shoving a blindfolded and handcuffed blond ninja forward.

"He looks pretty weak," someone remarked.

"Yeah, he can't possibly be the one they were talking about. Probably someone in the exams trying to cheat or something. Who knows?"

"How could you possibly cheat?"

"Not a clue."

"Alright everyone, the exams will start in a moment, calm down," Anko muttered (she's a good person in the story, yay!).

Sunako carefully lifted the blindfold away, and took off the handcuffs. "Well?"

"What should I do, Sunako-dono?"

"Get in the forest, baka!" she snapped. "Hurry it up, everyone's waiting for the exam to start!"

Hinata was lucky to be on the other side of the forest so she couldn't see what was going on.

"G-gomen, Sunako-dono."

"Get going!"

He leapt into the trees, aware that he was being watched by everyone who was able to see. There were faint scars on his back where each strike of the whip had gotten to him, although Kyuubi was working on healing those as to keep from crippling 'kohai' as he had dubbed Naruto.

_What? Hurt, kohai? _Kyuubi had asked Naruto mockingly.

_Enough of that already! _Naruto snapped. _Do you know how annoying that is? What if I called you senpai all day? _

_I wouldn't mind at all. _

_Fine, senpai/ _

From then on the names had sort of stuck, even though they were origionally just taunts to annoy the other.

_Now what? _Naruto asked, bored after a few minutes of leaping randomly from branch to branch and getting utterly lost.

_Simple. Release me. _

_Not a chance. _

_Come on, kohai… _

_You do realize using the name 'kohai' alone is considered rude, don't you? _Naruto asked for the second time since Kyuubi had started using it like it was his real name.

_That's the point, kohai. _

Naruto sighed and sat down. _Now I suppose we can wait for a few minutes. _

_I can sense movement… Let's go kill them… _

_Let them come to us. _

_Kill them! _Kyuubi repeated, sending a powerful wave of burning chakra through Naruto.

_Ouch! No, wait awhile, senpai! _

_Stubborn brat… _

Naruto leaned against a tree. The team soon came into view. "Well," he mused, startling two in the group, even though one kept perfectly still. "Wind nin, huh? And their leader…" he added, staring at the one in front, "seems to be mascara boy."

"You're Naruto, aren't you?" the one Naruto had insulted asked quietly.

"How'd you know?" Naruto asked with a yawn. "Not that I care… If I don't attack you, those baka ANBU are going to do that again, so yeah…"

"You shouldn't attack me," 'mascara boy' growled as the other two stepped back cautiously.

"Give me one reason not to."

"Because you'll die."

"And I care about that why? Even if I do die, I don't care. I don't _want _to die, exactly, but if death beckons to me, I shan't refuse."

"I don't want to have to kill you."

"Nor I you."

"Why?"

"Because I see suffering in your eyes," Naruto replied simply. "You've had a pretty rough life too, haven't you?"

"Pretty much."

"Anyway…" Naruto murmured, standing up. _Kyuubi, power. _

_…No. _

_Why not? _

_He could possibly present a slight challenge. Flee this battle while I have time to contemplate the information I just gathered. _

_What? _

_He's a Jinchuuriki too, dimwit! _

_WHAT? _

"You're one too," Naruto murmured.

"Huh?"

"Which one is it?"

"Which what?"

"Which demon, obviously."

"Aren't you going to ask my name first?"

"Fine. What is your name?"

"Gaara. And as for the demon, it's Shukaku."

"So… Would you do me a favor?"

"Like what?"

Naruto paused, then said, "Please… Would you kill me?"

Gaara was quite shocked, but he didn't show it. "Why?"

"I'd rather have someone I hardly know do it than that baka of a Hokage."

"NARUTO! NO!" a familiar voice shouted from the trees.

Great… Why had she come, of all people?

**A/N Sorry for the really late update. My parents banned me from using Tayuki for a week.**

**Naruto: IT'S NO WONDER! YOU'RE SO ADDICTED TO THE COMPUTER THAT YOU NAMED IT!**

**SCC: Oh shut up. –is annoyed- Anyway, you shouldn't expect that to be the last instance torture happens in this story. THERE SHALL BE MORE! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHA! ANd no, Naruto won't die! STOP ASKING ME THAT! I could never kill the main character. XD Even if he's a hyperactive person, since I've taken a fancy to boys with blonde hair and blue eyes for some reason. -hugs Naruto, Diedera, and Yondaime- **

**Yondaime: ACK! -prepares to seal SCC-**

**Naruto: Don't, or the Jinchuuriki to house her will go through worse than me. EVERYONE hates SCC.**

**Yondaime: True...**

**Diedera: GET OFFA ME!**

**SCC: NEVER!**


	21. Suicide?  No

**A/N Chii!**

**Naruto: Well, at least she's now addicted to Chobits instead of torture methods.**

**SCC: AS IF! I'm addicted to both! -laughs evilly-**

**Naruto: Someone help me… -sweatdrops-**

**People from the Asylum: WE'RE ON IT! -explode due to SCC's author powers-**

**SCC: -evil laughter- Oh, and…**

**Disclaimer: I do not own "Firestarter." I need to say this because I have a speech from Itachi that was inspired by a quote from that book that you can read at the author's notes at the end. (Or you could just check the book out of the library. YAY LIBRARIES!)**

"I'm getting tired of this, Hinata…" Naruto growled, hardly knowing what he was saying. He wanted to die more than anything at the moment… And Hinata was only getting in the way. 

"Naruto, please! What's gotten into you?" Sakura asked him, confused. Gaara looked on-amusement flickered across his eyes. (Take that, people who think this is too OOC!)

"I'll tell you," Naruto spat, annoyed. "How about fourty-wait, no, sixty lashes of a whip?"

"WHAT?" Sasuke gasped. The cuts Naruto had gotten had been bad, but could they have really been _that _bad?

- - -

"Why is it you wanted to see me, Itachi?" Ranmaru asked calmly.

"You… You're a fool," he growled.

"Why is that?"

"Naruto is innocent, you son of a bitch!" Itachi spat. The Hokage didn't seem to care much, however.

"I know," Ranmaru replied quietly. "Does it look like I care?"

"You idiot," (baka doesn't sound right in this situation for some reason) Itachi growled.

"Why? I have him completely under the village's control. It's a power everyone should be happy with. I don't see why you aren't."

"Only a _true _demon wouldn't feel guilty about this! You've turned the village of fire into the village of monsters by telling them this! Everyone is directing their hate at one child!"

"Thank you for the compliment," Ranmaru replied. "In truth, all that shows is that I have an extremely high amount of control of this village, as well."

"I can't believe nobody has noticed how selfish you are!"

"The thing is, they don't want to. They all want a Hokage that allows them to lock up what they fear. The Sandaime kept them in terror while Naruto had freedom," Ranmaru explained.

"Damn you, making plans to control a force beyond your comprehension! A force that belongs only to the gods themselves!…And to this one little boy!" Itachi growled. (Yep, that speech was very similar to something from "Firestarter," I know, I couldn't think of what else to type...)

"I…" Ranmeru replied softly, "Don't care. I'm willing to take the risk, if it means this much power."

"The boy is thinking of suicide!"

"Then I'll just have him restrained until he learns that won't work."

"And if he does it in the Forest of Death?"

"I'll start over… A new Jinchuuriki."

"There are only nine in the entire world."

"No, those are just the Bijuu. There are more demons… More vessels… Like the time I tried it on a demon taking the form of a thunder storm… That vessel dies during the sealing, actually, as did the sealer… A bit more research, and all that will be fine, though."

"Innocent people dying because of your selfish desires?"

"Yes."

And the most horrifying part was….

Ranmaru smiled as he said it.

**A/N YAY! The next chapter is up! I hope that makes up for the other late update, although this is kind of short… Well, can't be perfect. And the actual quote from "Firestarter" is;**

** " 'How right you are,' Rainbird said, and laughed. 'So are you. Mad as a hatter. You sit here and make plans for controlling a force beyond your comprehension. A force that belongs only to the gods themselves…And to this one little girl.' "**

**See you next chapter!**


	22. Killing Emotions, right?

**A/N Next chapter!**

Naruto followed the group. After a long conversation, it was decided that they would stick together, since both groups had a Heaven scroll, anyway. Kankuro and Temari were worried about Gaara, constantly murmuring things about how normally he would have killed Hinata, Sasuke, and Sakura by now (she left out Naruto's name, since she wasn't sure Gaara _could _kill Naruto). 

Naruto reluctantly complied, not mentioning what would happen if anyone found out he wasn't killing people on sight as he'd been ordered to do.

He didn't want to think about that.

- - -

Itachi glared at the Fifth, enraged. "And what would happen if I told all of Konoha about how you're using them?"

"You won't."

"Why the hell not?"

"You'll soon find out what Naruto is going through," Ranmaru replied quietly.

Itachi's eyes widened. "You wouldn't."

Ranmaru, without speaking, pressed a switch on his desk. "You're going to be locked up in Konoha's jail for treason. But don't worry, I shan't deal the death sentence… Just a life of torture. Maybe that'll teach you to mess with your betters."

"You bastard! You wouldn't dare!"

"Too late," Ranmaru said, a smile flickering across his face as he detected a group of ANBU coming their way.

"What is it, Hokage-sama?" one of them asked as they appeared, leaping through the window.

"It pains me to tell you that Uchiha Itachi has committed treason," Ranmaru replied.

"You lying son of a-"

Without asking a single question on what Itachi had done, one of the ANBU knocked him out.

He could have fought against it. But it was pointless. That would just make them believe Ranmaru even more.

- - -

Suddenly, Hinata told the rest of the group, "Someone in that direction." She pointed into the trees.

Naruto hardly cared about who was there. The entire world could be wiped out and he wouldn't notice. All that mattered was finally sinking into the eternal peace known as death… But he couldn't in front of everyone else. Not yet. He'd find some other way… "Whatever," he sighed. "Which scroll do they have?"

"An Earth scroll… Huh? Two earth scrolls! They must be deadly, to have kept the second one!"

"Good. That's all we need, then," Gaara said simply.

"This'll take a second or so at max," Kanuro laughed. "Those poor suckers don't know who they're dealing with!"

And so, they confronted the grass nin. Naruto stared intently at the one who seemed most powerful. "Hey, the freak swinging their tongue around, you might want to hand over your scrolls before you die!" Naruto mused.

"You're the one that shall die, fox-boy," was the curt reply.

"Your point?" Naruto sighed.

"Naruto…Kun…" Hinata gasped. "You haven't given up, have you?"

"You just noticed?" Naruto asked, hardly knowing who he was talking to.

"You…You can't just…"

"Face it, it's over. Ranmaru's won. I can't stand punishment any more. I try to be defiant, and for what? Just pain. What's the point any more?" Naruto asked calmly, before stepping towards the enemy. "As for you, you're ready to taste death. You may as well give up… Now."

"Calm down. I only want the Uchiha," the grass ninja replied, smiling.

"What do you want with me?" Sasuke spat.

"You're young, strong, and you're also… How should I put it? Breakable. Unlike Itachi."

The two ninja by the one speaking didn't move, as if they were worried that they'd be killed for interrupting.

"Naruto," Gaara murmured. "Shall we kill her?"

"Her?" Naruto repeated. "I don't know whether that's a boy or a girl. Reminds me of that Haku guy…"

"Whatever you're talking about, I don't care. Give me the Uchiha!"

"LIKE HELL WE WILL!" Sakura spat, having gotten behind the grass ninja without being detected. She pulled out a kunai to strike a final blow.

"Sakura! Look out!" Sasuke shouted. Too late. Sakura was knocked into a tree by the one on the grass ninja's left.

"Pathetic," the grass ninja hissed, smiling.

_This is so very amusing, _Kyuubi growled happily.

_No, it isn't interesting! It's awful! Why won't I move to help her? _

_ Because all it'll bring is pain. You said so yourself. _

Gaara watched silently, waiting for Naruto to make a move. Hinata stared in horror. "How could you?" she shouted, and charged forward.

The grass ninja plunged a kunai into her neck. Hinata's eyes widened as she fell to her side.

Blood was spilling to the ground. But it wasn't only hurting _her. _

"It hurts…" Naruto murmured, putting a fist over his heart. "It aches… I can't stand it…"

"A broken heart," Gaara recited quietly, remembering what his uncle had told him. "I believed my uncle could heal it, but he lied. I hated everyone, believing that they were all lying to me. But now… I'm not sure everyone's a lier…"

"Gaara…" Temari murmured.

"HINATA!" Sasuke yelped, ready to charge, Sharingan prepared.

"Calm down, Sasuke, I only want you to come quietly. If you do, I'll leave everyone in peace," the grass ninja offered.

"Don't, Sasuke," Naruto ordered as Sasuke stepped forward, about to comply.

"What?" Sasuke barked at the blonde.

"I'll handle this."

When Naruto looked up again, his eyes were blood red. "You…" he growled at the grass ninja. "GIVE ME HINATA BACK!"

"Too late, she's dead!" the grass ninja laughed.

"We'll wait for you at the tower, Orochimaru-sama," one of the other two ninja murmured.

"Good," Orochimaru said as they leapt away.

"SHE ISN'T DEAD!" Naruto spat, and ran forward after taking out a katana. "YOU, ON THE OTHER HAND, ARE!"

**A/N Major cliffy! YAY!**

** Anyway, don't flame me about the Itachi thing.**

** Or the short chapter.**

** Or the cliffhanger.**

** If you do, I'll eat a candy apple. And you don't want that, do you? –evil laugh-**

**OMG… IS it seriously chapter twenty-two already? -gasp-**


	23. Bleeding Heart

**A/N Hehe… Sorry about the katana thing, people, I meant kunai… And is it seriously chapter 23? -gaspity gasp-**

** Oh, and I'm typing this while listening to "Alone." (Random bit of information, huh?) My shadow's the only one who walks beside me! My shallow heart's the only one that's beating! -continues singing-**

** And thanks, Anne Camp. Yeah, I agree, I SO need to explain the OOC-ness. I shall do that now.**

Hinata didn't know what triggered it. She hated anyone who hated Naruto, including her own family. 

It was lonely. She was so very shy, and also considered too weak to be clan head. Neji, a branch member, was millions of times stronger than she.

It had been eating away at her, like a disease. And then… There's Naruto, not even having a family, or knowing who they were. And yet he was, seemingly, perfectly fine with that. Hinata envied him for that power-admired him for knowing how to brush every insult off like it was swatting away a fly.

Then, like magic, the fear he had gone through that day at the academy showed her how wrong she had been. Naruto wasn't brushing off his pain-he was _completely hiding it. _He couldn't put the candle out, so he hid it in a closet, where it stayed burning. And now, as the room temperature changed, it was engulfing the whole building in flames.

Mizuki had said those words and changed everything. _"The problem is, and has always been you." _

They stung more than just Naruto.

She had watched, silently, too shy to say anything as the ANBU took him away.

Being shy was doing nothing any more. It was painful not to be able to do anything. Her heart throbbed like never before. Even after it was explained that Naruto was a Jinchuuriki, it still hurt. That was why that shyness turned into nothing. Just letting go of that urge to remain unknown to the rest of the world made her feel like she was finally getting rid of an anchor that had always been chained to her.

Hinata couldn't handle it any more. She stood up, and said what she said.

And then it was forgotten to all but Sakura and Sasuke.

Yet it felt so good to finally get rid of that weight… That horrible feeling she had in her mind, as if hell was about to break loose and she was powerless to stop it.

It was that feeling that made it so she wanted to kill herself. And now it was gone. Gone. _Gone! _At last she was free.

But Naruto wasn't. And until he was, she was abandoning that anchor from before. Hopefully forever.

Her vow was her dream. It was the only thing that mattered. Naruto's freedom…

She would stop at nothing to achieve that.

Not even death could stand in Hinata's way.

- - -

Sasuke had always hated his father for not caring about him as much as Itachi. It was always, "Itachi is a genius," and "Itachi is the best!" And to see his father giving nothing but attention to Itachi hurt. It hurt so very badly. The only things he wanted were attention and love. And those were practically the only things he _wasn't _getting. To everyone else, he hardly even existed.

That is, everyone but Itachi.

Sasuke's older brother had tried desperately to get their father to notice Sasuke. Occasionally, the younger Uchiha would pick up constant comments such as, "Sasuke is doing just as good as I did in the academy," and "He could probably handle Gokakyu no Jutsu with ease."

But the response was always something like, "Yes, but he isn't half as good as you. You're the ANBU captain, after all."

Then, some 'difficult matters' came up, and Itachi quit being ANBU captain. Whatever had caused it, Sasuke wasn't very interested.

Or at least he _hadn't _been.

It wasn't soon after that Naruto was taken away by the ANBU, and that was when Sasuke began to understand. Itachi was a good person.

And Sasuke didn't want attention from his father any more. No, after one second of understanding why everyone hated Naruto and why Itachi had quit being ANBU captain, it was like his care for all but those who were understanding people on Naruto's condition shattered.

All that mattered were Naruo, Hinata, and Sakura…

Hinata loved Naruto, though, that was obvious. And anyway, Sasuke and her were just friends. And yet, when he looked at Sakura, it was…

It was gazing into a green field of grass. And her eyes reflected her bangs, causing that green grass to look like it was accompanied by lovely pink flowers…

Sasuke's heart ached as he realized he could never look at her with normal eyes-no, he was going to get Sharingan, being an Uchiha. Sure, he could just switch it off, but it just wouldn't be the same…

But maybe Sakura would understand… Just maybe she would see him for more than just a good-looking ninja with high skill levels, making him the most popular Genin there was…

Although Ino didn't understand that at all. Not only did she not care what happened to Naruto, she only saw Sasuke for an Uchiha.

Only Sakura could see more than just the Sharingan.

- - -

Itachi just wanted to kill them all, sometimes-not Sasuke, of course, but everyone else in the clan. He was getting too much attention. He could hardly blink without someone ranting on about how amazing it was.

So he was strong. Whatever. Big deal. So were a lot of people, like Lee. But no, just because Itachi was from some important clan, he was all people cared about. The worst part was the guilt that Sasuke was being treated like he didn't even exist.

And yet, if he killed them, it would just make everyone pity hi for not having a family. The only way he'd possibly get them to hate him was to go off and be a rogue. He could kill half of Konoha and have everyone say things like, "Oh, it wasn't his fault, he probably just got bored, he needs more missions."

Those idiots needed to be taught a lesson. And yet it wouldn't do anything. It just wouldn't

The elder Uchiha was at his breaking point when he was told about the plans there were for Naruto.

_"Itachi-sama, the Hokage told us something fantastic!" one of the other ANBU has said. _

_ "What is it?" Itachi replied with a sigh. Probably just more good news on how well the village was faring. _

_ "You know the Jinchuuriki, Naruto?" the other ANBU asked. _

_ "Yes, I do, Takenaga-san," Itachi replied, finally listening closely. This couldn't be good news. _

_ "It's going to be locked up! Locked up! That idiot of a third didn't do a thing about it, but now our fears will finally end! End!" Takenaga replied. _

_ "What?" _

And that had been it.

No more captain of ANBU for him, no way. Be doing a project that would make him feel more guilt than he already did? Never. Never, never, never, not in a million years.

They hadn't bothered asking him why-no interrogations, nothing. The precious Uchiha prodigy was probably just stressed out, that's all.

Psh, they may have been right, but not in the way they thought.

- - -

Nothing was going right. Everything was going WRONG! Inside, he knew Hinata cared, but at the same time it hurt to know that she did. Why? Why was it not helping any more? There were voices in Naruto's head.

And it wasn't Kyuubi.

_She's trying to help, not trying to get you to suffer more! _Naruto told himself.

_Really? She probably hated you so much that she's purposely trying to get them to hurt you. It was because of her and those other two that you had to suffer such torture, was it not? _

_ No, no, no! It's not their fault, they were trying to help! _

_ They were not. _

_ They… Weren't? _

_ That's right, they were just trying to get you to remain defiant so you would supposedly be taught your place by those foolish ANBU. Surely you've figured that out by now. _

_ No… Hinata wouldn't do that… _

_ Yes she would. _

_ No she wouldn't. _

_ Face it, they think they're better than you. You're a kunai to Konoha, just a kunai… Or a shuriken… Or a katana… But the point is, they think of you as a tool. _

_ Maybe most of Konoha does, but Hinata doesn't. _

_ Why not? She could be lying. _

_ Or maybe she isn't. _

_ And what if she is? _

These arguments hurt so very much…

- - -

_Oh, Hinata, my heart… It's bleeding, I tell you, _Naruto thought as he was thrown out of the way with apparent ease. Kyuubi's chakra surged through him, but he rejected it. _No, Kyuubi. _

_ Why not? _

_ Because I want to win this with my own strength. _

_ They killed your little friend. You can get a sure revenge, _Kyuubi hissed, _if you let me handle this. _

_ Revenge… _Naruto repeated.

He smiled and stood up. "Kit isn't here any more," Naruto said quietly, the transformations already taking place. He formed a Kage Bunshin. "Too bad kohai doesn't know Kage Bunshins yet. So much better than the regular ones, and so much easier to do… Ah, well."

"Naruto, what the he-" Sasuke started to ask, shocked, but it was to late.

'Naruto' charged, claws extrended.

Already there were two tails formed. Kyuubi smiled.

Orochimaru leapt out of the way with ease. "Is that the only power the Kyuubi has?"

"No, but sadly I risk damaging this body if I use too much chakra," Kyuubi sighed, motioning towards the Kage Bunshin he had made to keep track of the pain Naruto was currently in.

The Kage Bunshin which was showing Naruto's current condition suddenly fell to the ground, moaning. Naruto (Naruto refers to the bunshin while Kyuubi refers to Naruto's actual body) grasped the seal, where the pain was the worst. "Make it stop," he groaned.

Gaara's eyes widened. For some reason, the chakra was actually harming Naruto… How was that possible? Well, it was a different seal type… Plus, this was Kyuubi, the nine-tailed demon. He had Shukaku, the one-tailed demon. Something told him Shukaku wasn't as powerful as the fox…

Regardless, he launched an attack of sand at the unexpecting Orochimaru, who looked as the sand approached and leapt out of the way, jumping from tree branch to tree branch as not only Kyuubi followed him, but the sand, as well.

Sasuke used this distraction to dash over to Sakura. "Sakura, are you all right?" he asked, shaking her. She nodded slowly.

"I'm… Fine… Let's check Hinata…" she replied quietly, her face reddening into a blush ad she saw Sasuke so close up. "She's injured worse than I am…"

Kankuro already had his puppet ready, and Temari had gotten her fan opened so a single moon was visable. They joined the fight, while Sakura and Sasuke leaned over Hinata.

"Hinata?" Sakura addressed. "Hinata, are you alright?"

No response. Sakura carefully removed the kunai, heart beat quickening with fear. "Well?" Sasuke inquired, anxious.

Sakura took Hinata's wrist. "There's still a pulse… But… I'm still worried… If she doesn't get medical attention soon, she'll…"

Neither said the next word.

They both already knew the situation was almost hopeless. Whether through blood loss or the injury itself, Hinata was going to…

It hurt to think about it.

** A/N Read and review, everyone. Come on, I like seeing an inbox full of emails. It gives me something to do when I'm bored! Please REVIEW!**


	24. Orochimaru VS Kyuubi

A/N OMG! I ACTUALLY CAUGHT UP ON THE MANGA! -faints due to shock upon seeing "Hermit Mode"- Jiraiya…CHAN? That doesn't sound right… -totally shocked- Anyway, I'm off the reading "Twilight." So updates may be slowed by my reading about a human falling in love with a vampire. –begins acting like Kakashi-

_Hinata, _Naruto thought as he crouched there in front of Orochimaru, ready to strike. _I can't believe… You did such a thing… _"I'll mutilate you…" he growled. Kyuubi may be in control, but Naruto found himself able to slightly influence the decision of words as the fox attacked. 

He switched to the point of view of the kage bunshin, somehow (probably because Kyuubi was currently in control), and ignored the pain. He stepped towards Hinata, who was barely conscious. Sasuke and Sakura were leaning over her.

"Why, Hinata?" Naruto asked quietly. "Why protect friends, or even try to get revenge for what happens to them?"

"Because…" Hinata murmured, "You showed me how to be strong… And stand up for myself and my friends… How can you, of all people… Not understand?"

Naruto knelt down beside her, not knowing what to do any more. "I don't get it any more… I just don't get it, kuso!" His hands became fists as he realized this.

"Naruto… Please… I… I really l-"

She coughed up blood. "Hinata, stop it!" Sakura ordered quickly. "You shouldn't talk, it's a wonder you can in the first place!"

Sasuke checked with Sharingan. "It looks like the kunai missed her throat, as far as I can tell. If we hurry up and get the scroll, we should be able to make it to the tower and get Hinata medical care."

"You two…" Naruto murmured. "Promise me… That you'll make sure Hinata gets medical attention as soon as possible… Please…"

Hinata was already unconscious. Sakura and Sasuke nodded.

There was a yelp heard. Kyuubi was knocked away from Orochimaru, but now instead of being a grass ninja, Orochimaru's face seemed like it had been scratched. However, instead of blood, there was white, as if the face had been a mask.

Gaara was still just standing there calmly, as if nothing had happened. Sand was still surrounding the former grass-nin. Kankuro and Temari were panting, exhausted. Kyuubi was just glaring at Orochimaru, wounds beginning to heal already.

Orochimaru smiled. "Well, I don't see a point in staying here much longer. Ja'ne, I suppose."

"You aren't going anywhere!" Kyuubi growled. "Not until I skin you alive… Or perhaps I should just rip your limbs off so you can bleed to death… I really can't decide… I just tore through all those Konoha idiots thirteen years ago… Curse that Yondaime…"

"Shut it, Kyuubi," Naruto snapped. "This is no time to start your stupid talk of killing! I have nightmares because I go to sleep with you rambling on about how great you thought yourself to be as you trashed the village!"

"At least you can sleep at all," Gaara mused, but returned his focus to the enemy immediately.

Orochimaru kept smiling. His neck, somehow, extended… Too fast for anyone to get. In an instant, Sasuke gave a moan of pain, and clutched his neck. Orochimaru was already back to normal.

"What the heck…" Sasuke groaned, the curse mark already formed.

"Sasuke!" Naruto gasped. Everyone stared wide-eyed, as Orochimaru had already gone, somehow…

"Hey, he left behind the two Earth scrolls you guys are after," Kyuubi pointed out, not really caring about what had just happened. "At least, he sounded like a he when he left… What was he, gay? Seriously, you can't tell if he was a boy or a g-"

"JUST SHUT UP, KYUUBI!" Naruto barked. "FORGET THE DAMNED SCROLLS! HINATA AND SASUKE ARE HURT!"

Sakura decided not to mention that she was low on chakra, for fear of what may happen next. It was terrifying enough to see a real demon, even though Kyuubi wasn't actually released. Just the fact that the fox could move and had access to his chakra was frightening. Naruto quickly formed a hand seal, and the bunshin vanished. Kyuubi's eyes widened, but the red faded to blue soon enough.

_Stupid fox! _

_ You can yell and complain all you want, kohai, but you know very well you're the stupid one here. _

_ You're just doing this on purpose now, aren't you? _

_ Pretty much. _

Naruto struggled to regain balance. There were burns covering him due to the demonic chakra. Just great… Now he had to pay for the fox to fight for him. The burnt skin felt like needles… He sighed and went over to Hinata. "How is she doing?"

Sakura continued healing Hinata. "Pretty good. Her throat was slightly damaged by the kunai, and I'm not good with internal wounds, so she still needs to see a doctor, but at least we know for sure that she won't die. She should really take it easy, though… Swallowing, talking, and even breathing to hard could make the damage worse…"

"Breathing, too?"

"She'll just have to breath slowly and carefully. That means no fighting. As for Sasuke, he's…" She motioned to the second unconscious body. "We have the scrolls now, so maybe we can-Huh? Gaara? Kankuro? Temari?"

They were gone, along with one of the Earth scrolls. Naruto picked up the second Earth scroll and handed it to Sakura. "Wherever they went, here's the scroll. I'll help you carry Sasuke and Hinata to the tower."

He took Hinata and slowly lifted her up. Sakura had Sasuke, as well. They headed off.

A/N Yeah chapter is short, I know. As to the battle, maybe I'll write a chapter with it later. As I told you before, I'm not good at fight scenes. They're my weakness. Anyway, I also want to ask the reviewers one thing: Do you or do you not believe that Sunako and/or Yukinojo should gradually become good characters, or should I discard the thought altogether and just have them killed off in the end?

And yeah, yeah, I realize I got the name of the song wrong. Why? I was too lazy to figure out the real one.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN, NYA! 


	25. It Hurts, But I'm Not a Monster

**A/N Hi again! And as to the one threatening to blow up my house with a nuclear missile, please be aware that you will also kill everyone else in Andover, along with many other towns. Most likely, you would be tried for murder of thousands of people, and in turn, you would be arrested and possibly sentenced to capital punishment. So… Yeah.**

**Anyway, my updates are being slowed down MAJORLY due to school. Sorry, everybody. **

When they got to the tower was when Naruto carefully helped Sakura wake up the other two.

"Good bye, you guys," he sighed, leaving them.

"Goodbye, Naruto-kun…"

It was when he was sure he was alone when Naruto broke into a sob.

"Everything in my life sucks… I did nothing to deserve this… And… I can't even use the excuse, 'Hinata loves me too much' to keep from killing myself any more… It hurts… It hurts so much… Worse than the cuts from a whip…"

"Which is why it's so interesting," a menacing voice replied from his right.

"Kyuubi? How'd you get out?"

"I didn't get out. You've been weakening yourself with your petty human needs and worries, and so I just left the seal temporarily."

"Leave me alone, Kyuubi."

"You don't honestly want to have to deal with this, do you?"

"No…"

"A true demon wouldn't have these issues."

"No, they wouldn't…"

"I can help you escape this suffering."

"Yes…"

"You only have to do one thing."

"What one thing? What?" Naruto insisted. "Tell me!"

"Why should I?" _Great, I'll just let this eat away at him until he's dying for me to take over… Then I'll destroy Konoha… And everything else along with it! _

"Because I want you to. Please!"

"Figure it out on your own," Kyuubi laughed, fading away.

"Kuso!" Naruto growled. "Why won't he just… Wait a minute… What am I saying? I… I don't want Kyuubi to take over! I don't!"

However, there was a part of him-and it wasn't the Kyuubi-that was justtrying to convince him to do just that.

_It hurts. It aches. It's awful. _

_It is, but- _

_But what? What's stopping you from just ending it all now? _

_My friends would die. _

_What friends? _

_Sakura, Sasuke, and Hinata. _

_What have they ever done for you? _

_They were there for me when I needed them. _

_How? _

_Well… _

_Admit it. You don't need them. If you don't need them, they can just die. Die with the rest of the village. _

_But- _

_Come on, you know you want to. Hinata is just an excuse you use so you won't stop defying orders from Ranmaru. But why? You defy orders either way, technically. They want you to be a monster. _

_So what? _

_You want to obey them, don't you? You want to obey them until it hurts that foolish Hokage for having you do so. You may be defying him at the same time by attacking the village, but it's the best choice. _

_Your point?… _

_There's only one way to do that. You have to… Become the monster they want you to be. _

_No. I can fake being a monster. _

_Can you now? Eventually, Kyuubi will take over either way, sooner or later. It may as well be sooner. _

It was such a difficult decision. _I shouldn't have to be faced with such a choice, _Naruto thought, unable to stop himself from crying. _If this is the kind of thing is the kind of choice a Hokage faces every day-a GOOD Hokage, at least, not Ranmaru-then I don't want to follow such a dream. It hurts too much, I can't do this! _

Why couldn't that moment, that one moment of indecision last forever? The moment that made him feel at ease.

"Hey," someone called. "You're supposed to be the monster they released int the forest? Psh, pathetic."

"Who are you?"

"The name's-"

Too late. All three of the people speaking to them gave away their positions.

Blood splattered onto the ground. _I won't become a monster, _Naruto thought, standing over the corpses. _But… I'll make them think I'm one. _

Somewhere deep inside the seal, a contented Kyuubi was growling, _Perfect. _

It was time to wait. Wait until he broke down enough to take over.

* * *

"They've run out of time," Sunako sighed. "And apparently very few of them have actually gotten to the end. We'll have to start the tournament in a month, as planned."

"Good," Ranmaru replied. "Now Yuki, retrieve the tool." **(1)**

"Hai, Ranmaru-sama," Yuki replied, and headed off to the forest of death with a walkie-talkie. Right before going out of earshot, he called, "I'll tell you if you have to activate the poison."

Sunako nodded. "So I have to go back to headquarters, then, I suppose."

"You're right about that."

"Alright, ja'ne."

* * *

"How many people have I killed?" Naruto mused, aware of Yuki being in a tree within hearing range of the words, but making it seem like he wasn't, and purposely faking his speech. "It's getting so much easier to do it without feeling guilty of murder… Hn, soon enough I won't feel anything at all." At this, Naruto laughed slightly. "Actually, it's kind of fun…What's gotten into me, I wonder?"

"Oy, everyone is either dead or at the tower," Yuki called. Naruto turned and looked up, not surprised to see Yuki standing on a branch.

"Hmph, you look like you're purposely trying to look like someone important as you stand on that branch," Naruto sighed, and laughed. "You look like an idiot!"

"You can either come with me willingly," Yuki said simply, taking a set of chains out of his pocket, "Or you can let me call Sunako and tell her to activate the poison… Naruto-jukeisha." **(2)**

"Fine, whatever," Naruto replied in an uninterested way. He held his hands out, waiting for the handcuffs.

"I warn you," Yuki added as he leapt down. "You will die at the press of a button if I tell Sunako to do so. So I suggest you don't try any tricks."

"What if I were to kill you before you told her, huh?"

"After long enough, the switch would be pressed, and you'd die anyway, since the village would assume I died."

"Good for you," Naruto replied in a vague way, not really paying attention to Yuki, but instead watching a fly buzz around.

**A/N**

**Okay, WOW! Two entire bold numbers! COOL!**

**(1)** **I didn't really know what Ranmaru should refer to Naruto as, so you can leave suggestions in your reviews if you want, or you can tell me if you like how I'm currently putting it.**

**The title of jukeisha is a honorific used for a criminal serving a sentence in Japan.**


	26. Kyuubi's Soft Spot

**A/N**

**Kon'nichi wa! Watashi wa Chibi Silameara desu. Hajimemashite! Nihon-jin desu!**

**(Hello! My name is Silameara Chibi. Nice to meet you! I am Japanese!)**

**Okay, that last part was such a lie. Watashi wa Amerika-jin desu, sadly. Anata otomi-dachi desu ka? (Are you my friend?) OF COURSE YOU ARE, WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!**

**Okay, sorry, that was totally random. Anyway, as you can see, I got bored.**

**Also, this story SHALL end THIS CHAPTER, DON'T worry. You want to know why it's going to end, ne? I HAVE ANOTHER IDEA FOR A STORY! YAY!**

**As for bad news… Someone in my classclassifies me as emo. I AM NOT! Give me a break, I break down crying due to being insulted a FEW times and pity a coyote that got shot and was/is now in my backyard with a leg wound ONE time and a few other MINOR things, but that doesn't mean I'm emo!!! Does it? Man, my online persona is totally different from my actual self. I may be torture obsessed in real life, too, but just in my imagination while I daydream about torture and horror. OMG, I can't believe I just realized that. XD CURSE MY BEING SENSITIVE TO EVERYTHING I KNOW ISN'T FICTION! -slaps self-**

**Anyway, this chapter is going to be pretty long, but it's the end of the whole story-except for the epilogue, of course! Be happy!**

It was when they got back to the village that chaos ensued.

Itachi sighed, staring at the prison cell bars. "Kuso, this is so stupid. I can't believe I'm actually here. How could I not realize that I'd have been of so much more use to the sensible side of the village if I just became a rogue? Kuso, kuso, kuso! I've had enough of this!" You know what happened next.

Naruto watched the fly buzz past.

They were walking through the village, headed towards the ANBU headquarters.

Naruto knew he was going to die.

It was a few days after the Chuunin exams tournement.

Oh, you want to know what happened BEFORE that, eh? Okay.

Naruto sighed as he tugged at the chains. No, he wasn't inside, he was outside. There were ANBU stationed all over the Chuunin exam tournament area. Yes, he had been allowed to see the tournament. Apparently, trouble was expected, and he was there 'just in case.'

His wrists were chained to the bars in front of him as he knelt down on the ground and looked down at the battlefield. The Hokage and Kazekage were sitting only a few meters away. Somehow, being up there felt odd. Here he was, up where he had always dreamed of watching the Chuunin exams from, and he was doing anything but enjoying it.

He couldn't escape, either. As soon as he had been chained to where he currently was, some sort of thing was injected, and for some reason he felt tired and weak. Also, he saw Sunako mumbling to Yuki, "I hope you remembered to bring the cure for that poison. If anything goes wrong, it'll be of no use tired and weak."

"Don't worry, I've got it."

The first match was between-uhg-Sakura and Sasuke.

"I CAN'T FIGHT SASUKE!" Sakura whimpered.

"Sakura…" Sasuke murmured, not knowing what to do.

Then…

"HOKAGE-SAMA!" someone gasped, panting and limping up to Ranmaru. "Itachi-jukeisha…Escaped…" At this he fainted.

"Escaped?" Sunako gasped.

Ranmaru turned to Sunako and Yuki. "You two, trail him."

"H-hai!" _Just great, _Sunako and Yuki were both thinking. _Us against the Uchiha prodigy! _

"And bring a few others to help, as well," Ranmaru added, as if guessing their thoughts.

"Just out of curiosity…" the Kazekage asked, "Who's the brat over there?" He motioned to Naruto, who remained still, by now used to being addressed as such.

"It's nothing, pay no heed to it."

Naruto sighed and watched the battles, hardly aware of what was happening.

And that was when a bomb was set off behind him.

The handcuffs snapped.

Naruto fell unconscious.

And he dreamt.

_He was in a white room. In front of him was none other than the Yondaime, Minato Namikaze. _

_"Wh-where am I?" Naruto demanded. "Why are you, of all people, here?" _

_Minato just frowned. "I'm sorry about what I've put you through, Naruto." _

_"It's gonna take a lot more than sorry for me to forgive you!" Naruto spat. _

_Minato had been afraid of this. "Please, try to understand… If the Kyuubi had been sealed inside an adult, their chakra paths wouldn't be able to handle the stress of the demon chakra. Only a newborn infant is able to accept the chakra and not force it away." _

_"Why me, then?" Naruto demanded. _

_"Because who else had been born on the day the Kyuubi attacked? Nobody." _

_"Yes, but still… It isn't fair!" _

_"I'm sorry…" Minato said again in an almost pleading voice. "I'm a failure as a father, Naruto… An absolute failure…" _

_"H-h-huh? Father?" Naruto repeated, in shock. _

_"Yes, Naruto… And I'm sorry. But… I had to protect the village. I asked them to treat you with respect, to treat you like a hero… I didn't have any control over what happened after I died. Not even the Sandaime was able to stop it, since he died." _

_Naruto was just staring at the Yondaime with a blank, almost confused expression on his face. "B-but who's Ranmaru?" _

_"A power-hungry monster," Minato replied sadly. "He came to Konoha a year before you were born. I trusted him and he betrayed me. Ranmaru wanted the Kyuubi's power. He still does. He purposely lead the Kyuubi to the village by taking one of his kits and killing them, before he took the body to Konoha, which Kyuubi sniffed out. The corpse is now decomposed in the Forest of Death." _

_"But… Kyuubi said he was joking about that!" _

_"I lied about lying," Kyuubi's voice snarled from behind him. "I thought you were on Ranmaru's side, Minato. Apparently I was wrong. I'm sorry I cost you your life." Kyuubi bent his head down in apology. _

_"Hey! If you've really been kind all along, why did you torment me so much?" Naruto asked, angry. _

_"I think I know," Minato replied, sighing. Kyuubi proceeded to explain. _

_"Since I believed Minato was siding with Ranmaru… I wanted to take revenge… But killing him wasn't enough. I was sealed in the process, and got very upset. So… What better revenge than to have Minato watch from the land of dead as his offspring was tortured? That made be happy when I learned you were locked up by Ranmaru." _

_Naruto stared at both of them. "If I'm here with Minato…" he said slowly, "Does that mean… I'm dead?" _

_"No," Minato replied. "I managed to contact you while you were unconscious." _

_"I've been unconscious tons of times! Why didn't you contact me then?" _

_"Kami-sama wished to make sure that it was really worth it to break such a rule." _

_"Please, what do I do now?" _

_Minato did a hand seal. _

_Naruto went into shock. _

_The collar around his neck fell to the floor of the white room with a clang. _

_"You now what to do, Naruto," Minato said simply. Another hand seal. Naruto suddenly felt pain rip through him where the seal was located. Kyuubi smiled. _

_"Thank you, Minato," the fox thanked. _

_"What happened?" Naruto gasped. Everything went dark. _

Naruto woke up with an extreme headache. What he saw above him wasn't what he expected. He had fallen down onto the ground where the fights were happening. Everyone around him was fighting. It only took him a few seconds to realize that Konoha was up against the Sand nin.

Someone behind him gave him a nudge. He turned.

And gasped.

Behind him was, in a much smaller size, no larger than a germen shepherd, was Kyuubi. "Minato allowed be to exit your body as I please… Sadly, the seal can't be released completely… So my size is diminished by a lot. And you still have access to my power."

"Ky-kyuubi…" Naruto gasped. The collar was on the ground beside him.

The blonde stood. "Come on, Kyuubi-sempai… We've got to defeat Ranmaru. He has to die before any more villages are endangered."

"Right behind you, kohai," Kyuubi replied. "One question, though; how are we going to explain to the village that we killed the Hokage?"

"Simple… Prove that he doesn't have a right to be Hokage. We've got to prove that he's not the right guy for the job… He's evil. Pure evil."

"We need time to plan our attack."

"Yeah… I know…"

**A/N Yeah… About the 'final chapter' thing… It WAS going to be the final chapter, but then I got a whole other idea into my head! You'll find out what it is next chapter, I guess. Sorry about the little lie, but I'm to lazy to edit the author's note up there. But I promise the story won't last too much longer, bear with me, people.**

**Oh, and yeah, I know that dream part must have seemed like crap, but I couldn't think of anything else. Sorry about the stupid-ness. XD **

**Look on the bright side! It's updated!**


	27. Rogues

**A/N YAY! ANOTHER CHAPTER ON YET ANOTHER WONDERFUL DAY!**

**YB: Not wonderful for me… How dare you tell the fangirls that I ASKED Kishimoto-sama to have Itachi killed?!?!?!**

**SCC: Well, first I go to the fangirls, then I open my mouth and form the words, "YB sent Kishimoto-dono a letter asking to kill off Itachi-sama." Then I get popcorn and watch.**

**YB: -sweatdrop-**

"Naruto-kun!" Hinata called, dashing towards him with Sasuke and Sakura. 

However, all three froze seeing the demon beside him.

Not to mention…

"Naruto-kun… Your eyes are red… Like the time from the forest…" Hinata murmured.

"Eh?"

"Tut tut, it's true," Kyuubi mused. "Your eyes are the same as mine. Probably a side-effect of the seal being weakened so much. Pity, now how are you to hide your being a Jinchuuriki? Dreadful, just dreadful. We could try a Genjutsu, I suppose… Then again, I would have to henge into a human, too… So many problems…"

"Is that the…" Sasuke began, staring blankly.

"Yeah, this is-"

"Kyuubi. I'll explain everything later. For now, we're going to need to escape the village," the demon interrupted. "So Naruto, say your goodbye and let's be off."

"Goodbye? You're not going anywhere without us!" Hinata insisted, distressed.

"Yeah!" Sasuke added, still holding the shivering Sakura's hand.

"But you'd be rogues!" Naruto insisted.

"So what? We wouldn't be alone! And that's what matters!"

"Fine, then," Kyuubi sighed. "Well all go. Let's be off. We should try to find Itachi-san, too, considering he's considered an escaped prisoner."

"Nee-san…" Sasuke sighed. "I hope he's alright."

"With a moron like Ranmaru for Hokage? Fat chance!" Sakura spat, getting over seeing the demon that destroyed the village.

"So… Let's go."

"The Jinchuuriki has escaped, Hokage-sama!" Sunako panted, just getting back to the office. "He left during the battle!"

Ranmaru sighed. "Press the switch. He'll have to be killed."

And with that, Sunako called Yuki with the walkie-talkie. "Kill him."

Little did they know that with Itachi, Hinata, Sakura, Sasuke, Kyuubi, and Naruto, all of those in the group were watching as a needle erupted from the metal of the collar and squirt a red fluid, followed by a clear one, into the air.

Naruto smiled. "I feel sorry for him, actually. How's he to know I'm still alive after that?"

"We can attack after we've trained more, too!" Hinata sighed. "Perfect!"

"But they only think Naruto is dead," Sasuke put in.

"Knowing Ranmaru, he'll assume that the Kyuubi escaped after Naruto's death and killed us all," Itachi replied, a rare smirk on his face. "That baka."

The group sat around a fire and watched the flames dance as they spoke of training, among other things.

**A/N Alright, this plot has sort of… Died. Anyways, that was the end, and I might-I repeat, MIGHT-make a sequel. So… Bye-byes! See you at another story! And about the chapter length, I thought I would be able to continue the story, but… Well… You know.**


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